Hannibal Rising by Thomas Harris

If you are up for a creepy read this term, I have the perfect book for you: Hannibal Rising.

Hannibal Rising is the fourth installment of Thomas Harris' Hannibal Lecter series. The book provides the reader with an account of Hannibal's life from age eight through eighteen, resulting in a better understanding of how he becomes the monster that he is as an adult. Although Hannibal Rising ties all four of the Hannibal Lector novels together nicely, it is not necessary to have read the others to appreciate it and follow the story.

As a child in Lithuania in the 1930's, Hannibal enjoys a peaceful and happy life with his family. He lives in a castle that was built by his ancestor, Hannibal the Grim, with his mother, father, little sister Mischa and a substantial staff.

World War II begins when Hannibal, being only eight-years-old at the time, and his family are forced to flea to a hunting lodge in the woods when the invading Nazis reach their castle. The Lector family and their remaining staff manage to survive for three years in the woods during Hitler's eastern campaign, until everyone but Lector and his sister are killed by a Stuka dive bomber, which crashes into their yard. It is at this point that the creation of Hannibal Lecter as we know him begins.

Lector and his sister Mischa are captured by looters and are held prisoner in a barn with some other orphaned children. Their captors are starving because of the cold winter during the war, and the children who are led away from the barn to “play” do not return. One of these unfortunate children is Mischa, and Hannibal's last memory of his captors and the barn is Mischa being led away to play. His next conscious memory is of his arrival at an orphanage after his captors have fled, and he is not able to speak because of the horrors he witnessed during the war.

After spending a troubling time living in the orphanage, which is situated in the former Lecter castle, Hannibal is sent to live with his uncle, Count Lecter and his wife, Lady Murasaki in France. Under the guidance of Lady Murasaki, Hannibal begins to speak again and makes an attempt to remember what happened to Mischa in the barn back in Lithuania. It is in France that Hannibal is provided with a formal education, and is accepted into medical school. It is also in France that Hannibal commits his first murder, however as Hannibal remembers more of what happened to his sister in Lithuania, more victims begin to appear.

I have looked forward to Hannibal Rising for a long time. Thomas Harris is an amazing writer with an enormous wealth of knowledge, including the ability to speak several languages. He also has an excellent understanding of the art, music, food, medicine, history, and literature of many different cultures. His novels are not only interesting and easy to read, but they provide readers with a learning experience.

It is important for anyone who has enjoyed reading the other Thomas Harris books, or watching the movies, that were based on the books to read Hannibal Rising. It helps you to gain an understanding of how Hannibal Lecter chooses his victims, why he kills, and why he behaves the way he does towards certain people later in life. Most importantly, Hannibal Rising reveals some of the similarities between the lives of Hannibal Lecter and Clarice Starling, the FBI agent he becomes enamored with in “Silence of the Lambs.”

Hannibal Rising is currently only available in hard cover format, and it may be purchased at Chapters for $34.95. For those who do not wish to purchase Hannibal Rising, it has not yet arrived at the London Library and there are many holds placed on it already. However I assure you it is worth the wait. In the meantime, there are three other excellent Hannibal Lecter books to begin with, including Red Dragon, Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal.