[A major reason for the positive reception of Mutmassungen über Jakob] is Johnson's success in the creation of characters….

Most obscure, yet most alluring is Jakob, the novel's hero. As the title suggests, the speculations are about him. The state agent Rohlfs, Jakob's "adopted" sister Gesine, Jonas,… the narrator, and the reader conjecture about Jakob. But not only with regard to the hero and the other figures in the novel is there uncertainty. The plot itself is clear only in its barest outlines; even they seem capable of being misread. (p. 215)

We learn about … occurrences through the people around Jakob and through the narrator, who, far from omniscient, takes part in their speculations. Although the more remote past is touched upon, their questions concern primarily the last few weeks in Jakob's life and focus on his ideological orientation. What was his relationship with Rohlfs? What accounts for Gesine's...