1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
One Wrong Step, January 5, 2011
Wiesel's "Night" was a searing and honest account of enduring the concentration camps of World War II. It told of a young boy's will to survive, and the shame that came with that loss of innocence. "Dawn" was the next step, with a young man fighting for the survival of the Jews in Palestine, in the Holocaust's aftermath. It chronicled his ethical struggles in using violence to purchase freedom and life.
"Day" is the third step in this trilogy, and once again Wiesel writes with stark yet evocative sentences. This time, the young man is a little older and he is struggling with the acceptance of love with a wonderful woman. His struggle is accentuated by his time in a hospital bed, after taking a step onto a New York City street and being struck by a taxi. He thinks back through his sufferings, his relationships, his guilt, and his questions. This is the perfect time for us to see Wiesel's character come to grips with life, not glossing over the horrific things but moving beyond himself into a deeper care for others.
But that is not the case. Wiesel's character takes another wrong step, blaming God for every ill done by mankind, projecting man's weaknesses upon the God he had grown up learning about. What about the good he sees in others, though? What about the innocence and self-sacrifice? Should these, by the same measure, be credited to the Devil from the same Bible?
Wiesel's characters are rooted in the realities of the world, among the good and evil deeds done by people of all ages. He shows great care and compassion for his fellow human beings, and deservedly has won a Nobel Peace Prize for his writing. Sadly, though, I see no maturation in this chronology of storytelling. The characters are still wallowing in their shame, their past. Still blinded by despair. Still imprisoned by self-centeredness masquerading as survival instinct. Even when our main character makes a final selfless decision, it's only based on lies. I had hoped for something transcendent from one who has faced such suffering. Many other Holocaust survivors have come to terms with the world around them and given us examples of how to move beyond--people such as Corrie Ten Boom, in "The Hiding Place," and even Death, as a fictional character, in "The Book Thief. I only wish Wiesel could have better applied his great empathy and experience.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Contrast to Night, September 13, 2010
This book was originally entitled "The Accident" because it involves its main character's 10-week ordeal of attempting to recover after being hit by a taxi cab in New York City. The protagonist, Eliezer, battles death and life for 10 weeks.
Elie Wiesel describes the protagonist of this novel as the survivor who endured the world's worst war to be so emotionally scarred that he thinks "wouldn't suicide be as great a temptation as love or faith?" In the preface, he mentions how children of WW II were discovered in holes and other hiding places, and whose emancipation was not a moment of magnificence. Rather, their freedom from hiding ensued into a forced starvation and eventual death - as their minds or bodies cared not to live, although offered the opportunity for such.
Pessimism about life abounds. "Maybe God is dead, but man is alive . . . " his friend lectures him. But, he also understands that God must be alive as his grandmother sagely told him "God needs love, not understanding." And, so he tries to believe.
But, such beliefs are accompanied by torments. Like an LSD-plagued person of the 1970's, he is reminded too often of what he endured in the Holocaust to feel free and alive. When recovering, the doctor wants him to fight death - usually something which can be conjured by fear. This survivor, the doctor learns, is afraid of nothing. He has seen too much. A survivor has witnessed more than he wants others to know. Like a military veteran, Wiesel for years said nothing of the hardships - then he began to write about the same. Thank God.
And, while alive the protagonist must ask why fate has delivered him to life and survival while parents and millions received much less. He surmises that "fate offered him life and maybe happiness." But, the memories continue to haunt him. He glares out almost devoid of connection to present day mind. He does not feel happy. He wants to be lucid. But, "lucidity is fate's victory, not man's."
And, despite his haunting past, others had it worse. One is named Sarah - a girl who also survived the Holocaust, but unlike he, she was deprived all concepts of decency and her childhood with one action - sending her into prostitution of the German soldiers who liked 12-year old girls. As a boy of similar age, the protagonist assumingly starved and survived the horror. As a girl, Sarah starved and survived a most despicable horror. He calls her a saint - to which she retorts with disdain.
Although this novel does not deal directly with the Holocaust, it touches upon how the Holocaust affects lives years, even decades later.
As the healing progresses, he realizes that his life is full of pain. But, "suffering is given to the living, not the dead." Hence, suffering is not a bad thing, it is just something which comes with the gift of life.
Full of great metaphors, esteemed witticisms, and almost-prophetic sayings akin to Asia's Confucius, this book delivers much in its 128 pages.
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Dawn and Day review, January 6, 2008
A Kid's Review
The books Dawn(Second book in trilogy of Night) and Day(Third book in trilogy of Night) are written by Elie Wiesel and they are both about life after the holocaust which was the worst thing that could ever happen in my opinion.
Dawn is the second book in the trilogy Night by Elie Wiesel. Elisha is the main character in this book and he is actually living as a terrorist in British-controlled Palistine. The scary part is that he is ordered to kill an English officer. He can't choose between horrors of the past and dilemmas is the present. You have to read to find out what he does because I don't want to give it away.
The book Day is the last book about the Holocaust by Elie Wiesel and it is a very strong ending to the three books I think. One of the main questions that Elie asks himself throughout the book is "Is it ever possible for Holocaust survivors to create new lives for themselves without remembering their old ones?" and I personaly think that it is a great question to ask yourself because it might be possible to but it is probably really hard to do that if you want to forget your past but remember people in it.
All three of the books should give you an idea of how lucky you are to live in this time period and give you a strong idea of what life used to be like and what life is like for Holocaust survivors now.
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