Maus 2

Maus II

By Art Spiegelman

Loud sigh--- but this time because I am sad that the last page has been turned.

Maus II picked up where the first left off, though not without making honest observations about the process of writing the first along with the commercial and critical success. Again, he is painfully honest about himself and his father. He never pretends or romanticizes. A powerful moment is when Vladek (his father) demonstrates irrational fear/dislike/distrust of black people- just as Nazi’s held irrational views of Jewish people. He doesn’t see the correlation and we are reminded that humans are always doomed to repeat history on one level or another.

This book ripped my heart out. Admittedly, almost all Holocaust books rip my heart out, but rarely do you come across one that stands out amongst them. Vladek reveals aspects that I never knew about, atrocities that made me feel sick to my stomach, and images that will forever be burned into my consciousness. Through it all, his love for his wife and his will to survive carry him through.

I don’t really know what to say that could do this book justice. It was amazing. I loved it. I turned the last page, sighed, and held it close to my heart a moment before I could grab my computer and write this review. Read it.