Efraim, a German-Jewish journalist living in London, faces a moral and existential crisis when he is tasked by his editor to investigate a sensitive political scandal in Berlin. Efraim navigates the complexities of his dual identity as he returns to the city of his youth, a place marked by the trauma of the Holocaust. He struggles against the weight of his past and the professional demands of his assignment, which force him to confront the lingering ghosts of history. The narrative utilizes a complex, often self-reflexive structure that mirrors the protagonist's internal fragmentation and search for truth. His objective is to reconcile his personal history with the reality of a changing, yet haunted, post-war society.

Discussion often centers on Andersch's deliberate use of meta-fiction to question the reliability of memory and the possibility of objective truth. Readers frequently highlight the stark, atmospheric depiction of Berlin as a city still grappling with its recent history. Critics often point to the protagonist's internal monologue as a primary vehicle for exploring the complexities of exile and belonging. The work is noted for its intellectual density and its refusal to provide easy resolutions to the ethical dilemmas presented to the reader.