Maus: A Survivor’s Tale is a story of family, war, and the Holocaust.
Vladek Spiegelman and his wife survived first Nazi-controlled Poland and then Auschwitz. Half a century later, their son Art Spiegelman immortalized their lives in two graphic novels: Maus I: My Father Bleeds History and Maus II: And Here My Troubles Began. Switching back and forth from the 1930s and ’40s to the 1970s and ’80s, Art interweaves his parents’ lives in Europe with his experiences and interviews with his father.
The persecuted Jews are drawn as mice, with Nazi officers portrayed as cats, yet there is nothing childish about the telling.
Nadja, Art’s mother, committed suicide when he was young, and the modern story includes his father’s troubled relationship with his second wife and Art’s troubled relationship with his father.
Heart wrenching details, like the author’s childhood belief that all adults moaned in their sleep, are briefly conveyed then pushed aside.
Maus: A Survivor’s Tale gives a touching glimpse into WWII-era Poland because of the humanity it gives its subjects.
Give graphic novels a try,
Megan
Maus: A Survivor’s Tale I & II
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You know, I read the first book of Maus, and loved it. But for some reason never got around to reading the second book. I think I was worried it would get even more depressing, but I really need to finish it!
That sounds quite moving…and like something you know you should check out but are a little worried to do so because of the affect it will have on you. Thank you for sharing!
It sounds interesting!
This is so strange – two days in a row these books have been mentioned on a blog I am reading. Your review is very mature and different from that of The Blogess (thanks God!). I had never heard of these books until two days ago. I’m going to think about reading them, and tell my husband. They sound like something he would like.
http://40daysof.wordpress.com/2010/05/10/something-is-very-wrong/
I keep meaning to try a graphic novel! Maybe I’ll borrow these!
I think I had this on my stack for the last read-a-thon, though I never got to it. Regardless, it’ll be on my stack for the next one in October. I don’t read a lot of graphic novels, but I like to do them during the Read-a-thons because they’re easy on the eyes (I feel like I’m talking dirty…).