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Herman Hesse is quickly becoming my “to go�� for philosophical reads. This was my third read from him (the others being Siddhartha and Steppenwolf, both very enjoyable), and what I can attest to it that there is always so much food for thought and introspection upon finishing one of his novels, and the semi-autobiographical Demian is no exception.

At the root and core of Demian is the literal and figurative self-awareness and spiritual self-discovery of our protagonist Sinclair through his life journey and struggles.

The book opens by giving background into the childhood days of Sinclair, our narrator. He lives in a religious and respectable family, but he is caught between the two realms that exist in the world—light and darkness. His home is largely a shelter from the ills of the world, but despite this, he falls victim to going against this and at points regrets this and tries to correct:

“But all of it was lost to me now, all of it belonged to the clear, well-lighted world of my father and mother, and I, guiltily and deeply engulfed I an alien world, was entangled in adventures and sin, threated by an enemy—by dangers, fear, and shame.��

After struggling to fit in at school, Sinclair eventually meets a boy named Demian, who helps to get Sinclair out of a major jam with a bully. Demian by parts opens up a new way of looking at the world to Sinclair, and becomes an impressionable person in Sinclair’s life.

In many ways this novel is representative of a search for meaning and identity in one’s life, a self-reflective, introspective look into the soul, an awakening of sorts to a new perspective. Throughout Sinclair’s story he grapples with this inner conflict of trying to understand himself and how he should see the world.

The novel is a mere one hundred fifty pages, but packs so much depth and meaning into such a short span. Demian is a very cerebral, thought-provoking, and spiritual journey and exploration.

If there is one blemish which kept this from being five stars, it is that I just felt like the ending and latter parts left some questions hanging in the balance. I get that it is a philosophical book, and the reader is to make their own judgments and assessments about meaning and interpretation, but the book seemingly just ends rather abruptly after setting up so many questions to be resolved.

This aside, Demian was still a brilliant book, and I will look to read more Hesse in the future.