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Helen Meier. Die Novizin. Zurich. Ammann. 1995. 219 pages. DM 34. ISBN 3250-10253-9.
Die Novizin is Helen Meier's second novel. Her first was entitled LebenLeben. She is also the author of four collections of stories: Trockenweise (1984), Das einzige Objekt in Farbe (1985), Das Haus am See (1987), and Nachtbuch (1992). Her first play, Die gegessene Rose, was produced in early 1995 in St. Gallen, Switzerland.
Here Meier constructs a two-voiced narrative, one belonging to an older onlooker who describes and reacts to the actions of the eponymous young novitiate, Herz. Her affection for Herz sets a tone which carries through the narrative. The premise is straightforward: relieved of all monetary concerns by the death of her parents, Herz engages in a quest...