Short Letter, Long Farewell

Nobel Prize winner Peter Handke's novel Short Letter, Long Farewell tells the story of a young Austrian--evidently modeled on the author--on a harrowing month's journey across the United States

The book opens in Providence, where a letter awaits the un-named narrator from his estranged wife, Judith. "I am in New York," it says. "Please don't look for me. It would not be nice for you to find me."

As the novel proceeds, however, it gradually becomes clear that Judith is pursuing him, not vice...