Night by Elie Wiesel

Night is an autobiography by Elie Wiesel, a survivor of the Holocaust during WWII. Wiesel recounts his experiences as a Jewish boy of about 13 as his family is first restricted to a ghetto in his hometown, then transported by train to Auschwitz where he is separated from all of his family except for his father, who becomes his only reason for life over the next couple of years. In this short book Wiesel expounds upon the torture he experienced on physical, emotional and spiritual levels during his time in Auschwitz and Buchenwald.

It is important to note that, after being rescued by the allied armies, Wiesel took a vow of silence on the subject of his experiences for 10 years. The trauma that he experienced, then, can be seen in the detail with which is describes his experiences. The reader has no trouble believing that Wiesel relives those horrors every night in his dreams.

What stands out most to me is the dehumanization that occurs in the concentration camps. The prisoners quickly lose their sense of self, and become incredibly indifferent to their own life or the lives of those around them. Death is such commonplace that it eventually fails to frighten those that it oppresses. The prisoners lose their desire for life, and the only things that sustain them are the most basic instincts of survival. At the end, boys attack their own fathers for a morsel of bread showing that humanity in these communities was all but lost.

This book can, in no way, be described as a pleasant book to read and no one could be so cold as to read this book and not be affected by its content.
Appearance: 4/5

Readability: 5/5 Night could easily be read in one sitting

My Points: 9/10 I would definitely recommend this book. I would like to have heard more about what happened after the war, but I assume that may be the content of some of Wiesel's other writings.

Total: 18/20