Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History
by: Art Spiegelman
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Amazon.com Review:
Some historical events simply beggar any attempt atdescription--the Holocaust is one of these. Therefore, as it recedesand the people able to bear witness die, it becomes more and moreessential that novel, vigorous methods are used to describe theindescribable. Examined in these terms, Art Spiegelman's Mausis a tremendous achievement, from a historical perspective as well asan artistic one.
Spiegelman, a stalwart of the underground comics scene of the 1960sand '70s, interviewed his father, Vladek, a Holocaust survivor livingoutside New York City, about his experiences. The artist then deftlytranslated that story into a graphic novel. By portraying a true storyof the Holocaust in comic form--the Jews are mice, the Germans cats,the Poles pigs, the French frogs, and the Americans dogs--Spiegelmancompels the reader to imagine the action, to fill in the blanksthat are so often shied away from. Reading Maus, you are forcedto examine the Holocaust anew.
This is neither easy nor pleasant. However, Vladek Spiegelman and hiswife Anna are resourceful heroes, and enough acts of kindness anddecency appear in the tale to spur the reader onward (we also knowthat the protagonists survive, else reading would be toopainful). This first volume introduces Vladek as a happy young man onthe make in pre-war Poland. With outside events growing ever moreominous, we watch his marriage to Anna, his enlistment in the Polisharmy after the outbreak of hostilities, his and Anna's life in theghetto, and then their flight into hiding as the Final Solution is putinto effect. The ending is stark and terrible, but the worst is yet tocome--in the secondvolume of this PulitzerPrize-winning set. --Michael Gerber
Product Description:
A story of a Jewish survivor of Hitler's Europe and his son, a cartoonist who tries to come to terms with his father's story and history itself.
Some historical events simply beggar any attempt atdescription--the Holocaust is one of these. Therefore, as it recedesand the people able to bear witness die, it becomes more and moreessential that novel, vigorous methods are used to describe theindescribable. Examined in these terms, Art Spiegelman's Mausis a tremendous achievement, from a historical perspective as well asan artistic one.
Spiegelman, a stalwart of the underground comics scene of the 1960sand '70s, interviewed his father, Vladek, a Holocaust survivor livingoutside New York City, about his experiences. The artist then deftlytranslated that story into a graphic novel. By portraying a true storyof the Holocaust in comic form--the Jews are mice, the Germans cats,the Poles pigs, the French frogs, and the Americans dogs--Spiegelmancompels the reader to imagine the action, to fill in the blanksthat are so often shied away from. Reading Maus, you are forcedto examine the Holocaust anew.
This is neither easy nor pleasant. However, Vladek Spiegelman and hiswife Anna are resourceful heroes, and enough acts of kindness anddecency appear in the tale to spur the reader onward (we also knowthat the protagonists survive, else reading would be toopainful). This first volume introduces Vladek as a happy young man onthe make in pre-war Poland. With outside events growing ever moreominous, we watch his marriage to Anna, his enlistment in the Polisharmy after the outbreak of hostilities, his and Anna's life in theghetto, and then their flight into hiding as the Final Solution is putinto effect. The ending is stark and terrible, but the worst is yet tocome--in the secondvolume of this PulitzerPrize-winning set. --Michael Gerber
Product Description:
A story of a Jewish survivor of Hitler's Europe and his son, a cartoonist who tries to come to terms with his father's story and history itself.
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Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: 
- Maus
Maus was a very engaging book.From the beginning I was pulled into the story.Maus is written in a very unique way.Art Spiegelman drew the Jews as mice, the Nazis as cats, and the Poles as pigs.Art Spiegelman told the story from the perspective of his father telling the story through an interview format.It is written in the form of a graphic novel.It is an interesting way to learn about history during the World War II era.Overall I liked this book, except I really didn't like the end. ... Read More
Rating: 
- Masterpiece
i was one of the few among my peers who had never read one of the Maus books.When i finally got around to it, i was blown away by its excellence.This is a masterpiece (and i do not use the term lightly).Do yourself a favor and don't miss it.
Rating: 
- Interesting
I must say that I find this work hard to properly describe in terms of how I feel about it. I think that it was a fascinating look at one man's experience in the Holocaust, but an equally important aspect is Art's interaction with his father during their conversations. This seems like an honest portrayal, especially since Art isn't afraid to include things that may make him look bad (he isn't always the most sympathetic son). I think connecting the story of what happened then, and how it's effects ... Read More
Rating: - Masterpiece!
As a Jew Living in Israel, holocaust related books are important to read, but it's hard to do it actually. I can remember several holocaust-era semi-biographic novels which are great but those are the exceptions. Most of the books are a bit bothersome though true.
Maus just captured me.I consider it one of the best books I've ever read in my life. It was just breath-taking, adding to that the fact that this was my first graphic novel ever, not to say first comic ever.
I gave it to my wife, ... Read More
Rating: - Poignant
Maus, A Survivor's Tale is a son's pictorial version of his father's story of survival during WWII.
Both haunting and mesmerizing, sometimes funny and touching, this is a story of perseverance and about what the Jews had to suffer through at the hands of the Nazis in WWII Poland. Spiegleman never sugar-coats what his father had to endure in order to keep he and his wife alive. A true work of art.
- MausMaus was a very engaging book.From the beginning I was pulled into the story.Maus is written in a very unique way.Art Spiegelman drew the Jews as mice, the Nazis as cats, and the Poles as pigs.Art Spiegelman told the story from the perspective of his father telling the story through an interview format.It is written in the form of a graphic novel.It is an interesting way to learn about history during the World War II era.Overall I liked this book, except I really didn't like the end. ... Read More
- Masterpiecei was one of the few among my peers who had never read one of the Maus books.When i finally got around to it, i was blown away by its excellence.This is a masterpiece (and i do not use the term lightly).Do yourself a favor and don't miss it.
- InterestingI must say that I find this work hard to properly describe in terms of how I feel about it. I think that it was a fascinating look at one man's experience in the Holocaust, but an equally important aspect is Art's interaction with his father during their conversations. This seems like an honest portrayal, especially since Art isn't afraid to include things that may make him look bad (he isn't always the most sympathetic son). I think connecting the story of what happened then, and how it's effects ... Read More
- Masterpiece!As a Jew Living in Israel, holocaust related books are important to read, but it's hard to do it actually. I can remember several holocaust-era semi-biographic novels which are great but those are the exceptions. Most of the books are a bit bothersome though true.
Maus just captured me.I consider it one of the best books I've ever read in my life. It was just breath-taking, adding to that the fact that this was my first graphic novel ever, not to say first comic ever.
I gave it to my wife, ... Read More
- PoignantMaus, A Survivor's Tale is a son's pictorial version of his father's story of survival during WWII.
Both haunting and mesmerizing, sometimes funny and touching, this is a story of perseverance and about what the Jews had to suffer through at the hands of the Nazis in WWII Poland. Spiegleman never sugar-coats what his father had to endure in order to keep he and his wife alive. A true work of art.
