Hannibal Rising

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**Hannibal Rising**

Author	Thomas Harris
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Mystery, Thriller Novel
Publisher	Delacorte Press
Released	5 December 2006
Media Type	Print (Hardback)
Pages	356
ISBN	ISBN 0-385-33941-0
Followed by	Red Dragon

Hannibal Rising is the title of a novel written by The Silence of the Lambs author Thomas Harris. The novel, a prequel to Harris' novels about his most famous character, Dr. Hannibal Lecter, chronicles the iconic serial killer's childhood and early adulthood. The novel was released on December 5, 2006 with an initial printing of at least 1.5 million copies.^[1]. A CD version has also been released, with Harris reading the text.

1 Synopsis
2 Film, TV or theatrical adaptations
3 Other Titles
4 Notes
5 External links

[edit] Synopsis

Hannibal is six years old at the beginning of the novel (1941), living in Lecter Castle in Lithuania, when Hitler's invasion of the Soviet Union suddenly turns the Baltic region into a part of the bloodiest front line of World War II. Hannibal, his sister Mischa, and his parents, along with some servants, escape to the family's hunting lodge in the woods to escape the advancing German troops. After three years, the Nazis are finally driven out of Russia. During their retreat, however, they destroy a Soviet tank that had stopped at the Lecters' cottage looking for water. The explosion kills everyone but Hannibal and Mischa. They survive in the cottage until six former Lithuanian militiamen led by one Vladis Grutas, on the run from their Nazi masters and dressed as Red Cross agents, storm the cottage and loot it. They run out of food and kill a small deer. Finding no other food, they kill and cannibalize young Mischa. Hannibal blacks out and is found wandering and mute by a Soviet tank that takes him back to Lecter Castle, which is now a Soviet orphanage.

After two years, Hannibal's uncle Robert, a painter living in France, comes to Lithuania and takes the young Hannibal to live with himself and his wife, the Lady Murasaki Shikibu. While in France, Hannibal flourishes as a student. His first murder is of one Paul Momund, a local butcher who offends his aunt. Lecter then divides his time between being the youngest person ever admitted to medical school in France, and hunting those who killed and cannibalized his sister. One by one the paths of Grutas' men cross with Hannibal's, leading to bloody ends. The novel ends with a twist of sorts, and the very last page speaks of Hannibal coming to America to begin his residency at Johns Hopkins University Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.

[edit] Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

The cover of the novel as it appeared before the name change.

A film adaptation, Hannibal Rising, is now completed, and will be released on February 9th 2007. The film was directed by Peter Webber from a screenplay by Harris, starring Gaspard Ulliel, Gong Li, and Dominic West. Universal Pictures will distribute the film in the United States.

[edit] Other Titles

Other working titles for the book were Behind the Mask: The Blooding of Hannibal Lecter, Hannibal 4, Hannibal IV, The Lecter Variations, The Lecter Variation: The Story of Young Hannibal Lecter, Young Hannibal, The Adventures of Young Hannibal, and Young Hannibal: Behind the Mask.