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Art Spiegelman

The Complete Maus: A Survivor's Tale (Pantheon Graphic Library) Hardcover – November 19, 1996

by Art Spiegelman (Author)

6,479 ratings

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The definitive edition of the graphic novel acclaimed as “the most affecting and successful narrative ever done about the Holocaust” (Wall Street Journal) and “the first masterpiece in comic book history” (The New Yorker) • PULITZER PRIZE WINNER • One of Variety’s “Banned and Challenged Books Everyone Should Read”

A brutally moving work of art—widely hailed as the greatest graphic novel ever written—Maus recounts the chilling experiences of the author’s father during the Holocaust, with Jews drawn as wide-eyed mice and Nazis as menacing cats.

Maus is a haunting tale within a tale, weaving the author’s account of his tortured relationship with his aging father into an astonishing retelling of one of history's most unspeakable tragedies. It is an unforgettable story of survival and a disarming look at the legacy of trauma.

Print length

296 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Pantheon
Publication date

November 19, 1996
Dimensions

6.68 x 1.14 x 9.41 inches
ISBN-10

0679406417
ISBN-13

978-0679406419
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“A loving documentary and brutal fable, a mix of compassion and stoicism [that] sums up the experience of the Holocaust with as much power and as little pretension as any other work I can think of.”
–The New Republic

“A quiet triumph, moving and simple– impossible to describe accurately, and impossible to achieve in any medium but comics.”
–The Washington Post

“Spiegelman has turned the exuberant fantasy of comics inside out by giving us the most incredible fantasy in comics’ history: something that actually occurred…. The central relationship is not that of cat and mouse, but that of Art and Vladek. Maus is terrifying not for its brutality, but for its tenderness and guilt.”
–The New Yorker

“All too infrequently, a book comes along that’s as daring as it is acclaimed. Art Spiegelman’s Maus is just such a book.”
–Esquire

“An epic story told in tiny pictures.”
–The New York Times

“A remarkable work, awesome in its conception and execution… at one and the same time a novel, a documentary, a memoir, and a comic book. Brilliant, just brilliant.”
–Jules Feffer

From the Back Cover

It is the story of Vladek Speigelman, a Jewish survivor of Hitler's Europe, and his son, a cartoonist coming to terms with his father's story. Maus approaches the unspeakable through the diminutive. Its form, the cartoon (the Nazis are cats, the Jews mice), shocks us out of any lingering sense of familiarity. Maus is a haunting tale within a tale. Vladek's harrowing story of survival is woven into the author's account of his tortured relationship with his aging father. Against the backdrop of guilt brought by survival, they stage a normal life of small arguments and unhappy visits. This astonishing retelling of our century's grisliest news is a story of survival, not only of Vladek but of the children who survive even the survivors. Maus studies the bloody pawprints of history and tracks its meaning for all of us.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Pantheon (November 19, 1996)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 296 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0679406417
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0679406419
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.93 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.68 x 1.14 x 9.41 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #3,270 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #5 in Literary Graphic Novels (Books)
- #6 in Biographies & History Graphic Novels
- #8 in American Revolution Biographies (Books)

Customer Reviews:
6,479 ratings

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Ruth

A great book!

Reviewed in the United States on January 28, 2022

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(the book was delivered perfectly). After finding it out that the McMinn County school board in Tenn. (an American state) banned this book 10-0 and after going online to research this book's author, I just had to order ($22). It came the very next day (today) and I've read the first 6 chapters. Wow. I am a WWII era history buff of many years and I am embarrassed that I never heard of this graphic book. Thank you McMinn County SB for being the impetus to discover this masterpiece. It will be a treasured addition to my WWII library.

1,696 people found this helpful

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Judy

A power important graphic novel

Reviewed in the United States on January 28, 2022

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An amazing graphic novel. So powerful and an important teaching tool for children so they can learn history. The fact that school boards have banned this book in backwards states is horrifying.

1,100 people found this helpful

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Molly

Perfect intro to teaching Holocaust to middle grade readers

Reviewed in the United States on January 28, 2022

Unlike the idiots running schools in Tennessee, teachers know this book is not only brilliant, but a perfect intro for teaching The Holocaust. Trying to ban any book is dangerous and egregious—-but banning this one? On the 77th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz? They’re not even being subtle. This book is incredibly valuable and important. Everyone should read it.

958 people found this helpful

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Must Read

Reviewed in the United States on November 15, 2018

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I am reviewing the paperback set, which includes both volumes I and II. That's important. You really need to read both volumes. While they were published separately and years apart, only by reading both will you read the entire story.

First, shame on me for not having read this years ago. I recall having heard the words, "You have to read Maus!" but I never acted on it. Perhaps that was during my "contempt for graphic novels" phase, before I understood that there is some information that can best be conveyed using a graphic novel format. (The book that converted me was a graphic novel adaptation of the 9/11 commission's report.)

These two books are a must read for any educated person. You will come away from the reading experience not so much with new insights on the Holocaust but with a deeper understanding. What more is there to say about the Holocaust? Plenty. Personalizing it, putting a face on it, always drives home what happened a good deal more than just hearing the numbers; that's the reason The Diary of Anne Frank remains so widely read. And the images, disturbing yet "graphic", will expand your understanding. This is the first place I have encountered a diagram of the infamous gas chambers and how they operated.

There are actually two stories in Maus, The first story is the tale of the author's father Vladek as he navigates the years before, during, and immediately after WWII. The second story is the tale of the author's challenging relationship with his father, who is a manipulative hustler. The very quality which enabled him to survive WWII also makes him a somewhat contemptible human being. At one point, the author's wife suggests that perhaps not all of Vladek survived the war, but I rather think that Vladek's character was very much in existence from the start.

For example, early on when Vladek decides to get married, he callously throws aside his girlfriend of 4 years, blaming her for the relationship's very existence because she threw herself at him in the beginning. But his reason for not marrying her is simple: she has no money. Instead, he marries Anja, the author's mother, whose father is a millionaire. This works out for him immediately, when his new father-in-law asks about his career plans. Vladek says he will go back to selling textiles, but his father-in-law gives him a textile factory instead.

As the war begins and Jews start to find themselves increasingly ostracized and bereft of jobs and professions, Vladek takes to the black market. Over and over throughout the two books, we see him find a way, less resourceful than hustler, no doubt frequently at the expense of others, even of others' lives. For example, in a cattle car in which he has physically found a way to elevate himself above the others (enabling him to become one of the only survivors), he is able to reach snow (read: water). When others ask him for some, he tells them that he can only reach enough for himself.

Even towards the end of his life, Vladek retains his hustler personality. He sneaks into the local hotel to make use of their spa and workout facilities. He plays bingo there for free. He seeks to return half-eaten food to the local grocery store and when the manager understandably refuses, plays the Holocaust card and earns himself a $5 credit. He even fakes heart problems TWICE, both times to get the author to drop everything and travel miles to come to his side; the second time involves a plane ride to an ambulance to a hospital - where tests are run and Vladek is then sent home!

No wonder the author's relationship with his father was difficult. Vladek himself was a difficult man. And yet, he was his father.

At first I wondered at the inclusion of the modern-day events in Maus, but they do add a great deal to the story and enable us to really get a handle on who Vladek is. The same man who tries to game the system by getting something for nothing at the nearby hotel is the man who gamed the system and survived the Holocaust, repeatedly skirting death.

579 people found this helpful

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Charles Aloha

Great book...Amazon's packing has gotten worse

Reviewed in the United States on July 7, 2021

Verified Purchase

Awesome book. My 3rd time ordering this to give to friends. However, the book was shipped in the box with zero packing material. Plenty of room for book to shift and move around and it resulted in a rip to the jacket. Amazon's packing process has gotten worse over time.

267 people found this helpful

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Jeremy David Stevens

A Story of Genocide, Survival, Trauma, and Love

Reviewed in the United States on December 31, 2020

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The Complete Maus is a graphic novel that tells two stories, one set in 1930s and 1940s Europe, and the other in roughly present day 1980s America, when and where the book was being written.

The first story is one that breaks the fourth wall in that it’s the story of the author, Art Spiegelman, and his father, the elderly Vladek Spiegelman. Art is a cartoonist interviewing his father about what it was like to be a Polish Jew during the buildup to WWII. He tells the story of his (as well as his wife Anja’s) trials and ultimate survival of the war and the Holocaust. As the story progresses, we discover that Vladek has remarried to another survivor named Mala in the years since Anja passed away in 1968. But that relationship is a complicated one (to say the least) as Vladek is a deeply flawed man in his old age. These flaws cause rifts between Art and Vladek as well. This first story zeroes in on these complications between Vladek, Art, and Mala.

The second story is a love story between Vladek and Anja as a young couple facing the dangerous and genocidal landscape of WWII Europe. Throughout the late 1930s until the war ended in 1945, the two relied on each other for the strength to survive. Even when things were at their most bleak, while both were imprisoned in Auschwitz, they managed to get messages back-and-forth to each other, and Vladek even managed to get his wife some food here and there. Once the war ended and they both escaped with their lives, Vladek found Anja again back in their hometown and they made a life together, eventually having a son named Art in 1950. The book is full of details about what many Jewish people experienced during the war. Anja came from a wealthy family, and Vladek was a successful business owner himself. But they all started losing their businesses and money as the landscape started to change. Vladek and Anja survived being sent to the ghettos in large part due to Vladek’s determined, clever, resourceful fortitude. They hid in bunkers with dirt and mice. In Auschwitz, Anja nearly died of starvation, and Vladek nearly of typhus. They were both tortured and beaten by Nazis, and Vladek was nearly murdered by Nazis on several occasions. They both lost nearly their entire families to the Nazis, including their first son Richieu, their parents, siblings, cousins and friends.

The two stories come together near the end as the timelines merge. That’s when the point is really driven home about how Vladek’s experiences in the war affected his psychology in later years. Although Vladek is a sympathetic character in his youth (smart, clever, resourceful and someone the reader really roots for), he is not depicted that way as an elderly man. This is a big part of the struggle for Art, attempting to reconcile the cheap, stubborn, argumentative (and sometimes racist) elderly man with the man he was in his youth.

Vladek wasn’t the only one who suffered as a result of the trauma experienced during the war. Anja had suffered from some sort of affliction that saw her hospitalized before the war, but she committed suicide in 1968. And Art battled the ghost of his dead brother Richieu, whom he had never met. When it seemed that a being sent to a work or death camp was imminent, Anja’s sister thought she could get her kids to safety in the countryside, so Anja and Vladek sent their very young son Richieu with her, hoping he’d have a better chance of surviving. Ultimately when she and the kids were hunted by the Nazis, she killed herself and all the kids to prevent them from suffering a more painful death upon capture. And even though Richieu was dead before Art was ever born, he lived with his dead brother’s ghost ever-present as he grew up in Richieu’s shadow.

In the book, people are drawn as animals. For example, Jews are drawn as mice and the Nazis are cats. I don’t know whether it makes the work more or less impressive as a result, but I almost completely forgot that they were mice and cats within a couple of pages. What makes this book great for me is the storytelling, not the metaphor.

This is the story of two lovers who survived one of the most terrible times in human history. They relied on each other, and even under the worst of circumstances, they persevered together. And it was also the story of the aftermath, the damage done and the trauma inflicted upon those who did manage to survive and the generations that followed.

I’ve never been a big graphic novel fan, but this is a fine piece of work.

This book made me think of a poem written by Leonard Cohen poem from his book “Let Us Compare Mythologies” –

'Lovers'

During the first pogrom they
Met behind the ruins of their homes –
Sweet merchants trading: her love
For a history full of poems.

And at the hot ovens they
Cunningly managed a brief
Kiss before the soldier came
To knock out her golden teeth.

And in the furnace itself
As the flames flamed higher.
He tried to kiss her burning breasts
As she burned in the fire.

Later he often wondered:
Was their barter completed?
While men around him plundered.
And knew he had been cheated.

171 people found this helpful

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Ella @ The Story Collector

Must-read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 4, 2019

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Containing both volumes 1 and 2 of Maus: A Survivor’s Tale, The Complete Maus tells the complete story of Vladek Spiegelman’s experience of surviving in Hitler’s Europe.

The first and most important thing to make note of is that this is a completely true story. It isn’t a piece of fiction based in the truth of Auschwitz, it is a true account of Art Spiegelman’s father’s life during World War II. It is a heavy and intense read, but completely incredible.

The second important thing you need to know about this book is that it is a graphic novel. It is masterfully drawn, with plenty of narration which makes it easy to read even if you’re not a regular graphic novel reader. The metaphorical representation of people is a massive part of this book. Jews are drawn as mice, Nazis as cats, the Allies as dogs, and Poles as pigs. This is an incredibly effective commentary on stereotypes, and highlights the absurdity of dividing people by nationality.

The brutal honesty about life as a Jew during the Nazi occupation is shocking and horrific, but truly, truly fascinating. On another level, the relationship between Art and Vladek is also explored, and it really shows how the children of survivors can be so affected by the experience of their parents.

Maus isn’t an easy or pleasant read by any means, but it is powerful and it’s essential. If you’re into graphic novels, you MUST read this book. If you’re into historical accounts and memoirs, you MUST read this book. If you read anything at all, you MUST read this book.

64 people found this helpful

Luke Foord

Simply one of the most important pieces of media about the Holocaust

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 29, 2022

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This was the first graphic novel I ever read when I was young, from a library. Years later it was the first graphic novel I ever bought.

I've got nothing to add that hasn't been said already but just do yourself a favour and read it.

9 people found this helpful

Ashleigh @ A frolic through fiction

Amazing

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 28, 2017

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Originally posted on A Frolic Through Fiction

As someone who loves learning about history, I was always going to like this graphic memoir. And while I’m on a bid to introduce myself to more non fiction, a graphic memoir was the perfect way to start that.

So this is the story of Vladek Spiegelman, drawn through his son, Art Spiegelman. And that one point alone – how it was done – was the main crux of my enjoyment. Because it wasn’t just the story of war. Oh no. Instead of simply drawing what his father said, Art Spiegelman actually drew the entire process. He drew himself visiting his dad, coaxing him into telling more of his story. He drew what he was like in later life, a small snapshot into how all this affected him long-term. And through that, I found myself feeling like I was sat right in front of Vladek Spiegelman – him in a chair, myself cross legged on the floor – while he told his story. How a graphic memoir can do that, with so little words in comparison to novels, is beyond me. But I loved it.

And then we have the art. Completely black and white with quite a sketchy look, each page is packed with drawings. It can look a bit overwhelming at first, but I personally think it suits the story really well. There’s the metaphor too – the Nazis are drawn as cats, terrorising the mice (ding ding ding, we have the title: Maus). Such a simple way to explain things, in a time when things weren’t simple at all. Suitable for a graphic memoir though, since there’s not really much leverage in explaining who each person on the page is and which “side” they belong to.

I expected to get emotional. But… I didn’t. I have a feeling that’s partly to do with the fact it’s a graphic memoir, and not as much time is spent describing how horrendous everything is. But also because of Vladek Spiegelman himself. It’s his story, yet as he tells it, he doesn’t seem to reveal many emotions. He just…tells the story. Here are the facts. This is what happened.

Though I might have felt more had a bit more been revealed about Art Spiegelman’s mother. In the beginning, it’s mentioned that she committed suicide after the war, and while it does go into it a little bit, nothing about that is really explained. Granted, that may be because they don’t know much themselves. But still. She’s mentioned so often throughout the memoir – as you would expect – but she herself doesn’t seem to be in it much. I’d have liked to see more of her.

As hard as they try, books will never be able to portray these events accurately. Nothing will. There’s a nod to that even in this book. But with things like these, though I (luckily) may not be able to imagine such ongoing hunger, such heartbreak, the pain and suffering…I might be able to understand a bit more. I can read books like this and know that at least their story isn’t going untold. At least I’ll be here, remembering for them. And that is the least I can do.

29 people found this helpful

Rosemary Standeven

Powerful graphic novel telling one man's struggle to survive the Holocaust

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 21, 2018

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This was an excellent graphic novel that captures the fear, the barbaric cruelty and nihilism of the Holocaust more poignantly than many a text-only book could. The story is set half in present day USA where the main protagonist, Vladek Spiegelman, and his son, Art, are now living, and half in Poland and Germany from the mid 1930s to the end of WWII. Art wants to document the experiences of his parents before and during WWII, and painstakingly draws out his father’s memories.
There are no human faces in this book. The Jews are depicted as mice, the Nazis as cats, Poles as pigs, Americans as dogs etc.
There is a split perception of mice as animals. On one side they are portrayed in much of children’s literature are cute and non-threatening, and on the other as vermin to be exterminated. Above all, they are powerless in the presence of larger, more predatory animals (such as cats). Mice being slaughtered evokes sympathy in a way that the extermination of other ‘vermin’, such as rats, never could.
When the story begins, Vladek is a successful businessman in Poland, courting Anja. Slowly the rumours of anti-Jewish attacks by Nazis in Germany and Czechoslovakia reach them. At first it is seen as a problem elsewhere, but bit by bit, the danger that the Polish Jewish community is in becomes apparent – but it is too late. The story deals with the attempts at hiding and sending of children to supposedly safer places, and then the rounding up of the Jews and the deportations to Auschwitz. Vladek’s life in Auschwitz and then later in Dachau is told, along with the luck and ingenuity that enabled Vladek to stay alive, when so many around him perished.
Vladek is not a sympathetic character. While he may have physically survived the Holocaust, his personality has been forever damaged by his experiences. He is unable to have a close relationship with his son or his second wife. Instincts that enabled him to survive, form a barrier between himself and everyone around him. In some ways, his mind seems to have never left Dachau. Because of this, the trauma of the Holocaust lasts well beyond the 1940s, and impacts directly on the offspring – and further generations – of the survivors. Art wants to understand the difficult man who is his father, and writing/drawing this book is his way of doing that.
This is not a book to enjoy reading. It is an important witness account, that needs to be documented and read. The black and white drawings (colour only on the cover) underline the seriousness of the content and the desperation of the world at that time, and have a visceral impact on the reader.
I highly recommend this book – to everyone.

13 people found this helpful

Tristan Sherwin

A Masterpiece!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 10, 2017

Verified Purchase

This is a masterpiece.

They say that a picture paints a thousand words, but master cartoonist and artist Art Spiegelman has drawn a lifetime. Tracing his father's experiences of the Holocaust, Spiegelman delivers something intensely powerful and emotional.

It may seem insensitive to portray the horrors of the Holocaust in a cartoon form, but there's actually something deeply immersive about this format. Like all good art should, the medium of this story pulls you into the experience; opening up the pores of our soul to receive the full potency of this stories message. With each frame of this cartoon you sense the foreboding danger, the growing dehumanisation, and the shock of what transpired.

The gas chambers and incinerators of Auschwitz, the forced labour, the street hangings, the disenfranchisement of homes and businesses and basic human dignity; the demonisation, scapegoating, and media-induced prejudice; the public beatings; the survivalist-led betrayal from neighbour and friends and countrymen; the slow and corrosive stripping away of personal identity which culminated in being reduced to a number...maybe if we could go back and witness these things we would turn ourselves away and refuse to reflect on the horror. But we need to see, and we need to learn, and *Maus*, alongside the stories of other survivors, helps us to do this.

The Holocaust is something we should never forget. Especially in today's world, where we find ourselves once more giving our ears and voices to the growing tide of stigmatisation, fear-mongering, nationalism and the dehumanisation of certain people groups. We may feel our words and opinions have no effect, that they're 'innocent' or 'harmless', but history shows how dangerously ignorant such thinking can be and how catastrophic the consequences are.

--Tristan Sherwin, author of *Love: Expressed*.

20 people found this helpful

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The Complete Maus: A Survivor's Tale (Pantheon Graphic Library) Hardcover – November 19, 1996

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