Two men work at the office in charge of privatizing former state-owned business in East Germany. Theo Wuttke is a former official; Ludwig Hoftaller is a spy. Both function as representatives for G nter Grass`s ideas about the aftermath of Germany`s reunification--which he has consistently opposed--and at the same time both are characters in a moving story about the failures and possibilities of human beings. A New York Times Notable Book for the year 2000.