Maus

Overall, the book was very surprising. I didn’t have much of a premise of the novel other than it being about the holocaust before reading it, which is a genre that is hard for me to digest sometimes despite the event being so critical to understand. The most surprising part of “Maus” was not only the fact that the main characters were depicted as animals rather than human beings but the very personal nature of the film as a whole. I never felt like I was excluded from the conversation of the book because I’m neither Jewish or experienced the Holocaust, but rather invited in as a quiet shadow to Art Spiegelman as he slowly but persistent gathers the story of his family's experiences in the war. It was incredibly easy to stand in Art’s shoes and relate to his curiosity and even annoyance with his father. A small note, I thought it was extremely relatable when Vladek threw out Art’s old jacket because he thought it was too run down for his son to be wearing, and it made the whole reading so much more relatable.  My mom has also done the same thing in the past, but no nearly as abruptly as Vladek had, but it still reminded me of those moments.

I was also more surprised to feel more comfortable reading this comic than previous Holocaust materials. My high school had us read books like “Night” by Elie Wiesel that only made me feel intense guilt and disgust about the events of the Holocaust because it was so detailed and I felt so terrible that humans could conceive such terrible things for one another. I don’t want to say that this book is watered down, because the events and concepts are not watered down whatsoever. I want to express that because the characters are depicted as animals and we are constantly experiencing Art’s side of writing the story, we are given terrible events and stories in manage doses that we can retain better and with less aversion, because the novel balances both terrible events with very human qualities and experiences. It allows me to want to continue reading without as much guilt or a sense of helplessness, which is what I normally feel (and should feel) when reading Holocaust memoirs.

The pacing of the story is also, I think, one of it’s greatest achievements. I never felt lost or overwhelmed by the amount of content as the first book progressed. I will admit that I wasn’t able to reach the second book, but the first was very manageable and conversational rather than a daunting un-ending amount of story. The story's natural flow between the past and present is incredibly tasteful and even when the present quickly removes us from the past storytelling, it still feels very gently and very much how our attention would shift in real life. I also want to mention that I appreciated that Art preserved how his father told the story and wrote the recounts word for word from his father's mouth. It's very easy to want to make sure that there is clarity for the audience, especially when it comes to dialogue and proper grammar, but it would have felt far different if Vladek had spoken perfect English without an accent. Instead, we can read it in our head exactly how Vladek would have spoken about it, and although I had to re-read a few sections, it made the story much more immersive and realistic.

Overall, I really enjoyed the first book and will move to read the second as soon as I am able because it was incredibly written. I also forgot to mention that this illustrated story felt, at least to me, very reminiscing of “The Arrival” in its personable qualities, but still more literal and grimmer. I will say, too, that a large reason why the story makes me want to read more is the fact that I’m reading a story within a story. Both Vladek’s history and Art's present contains stories that I desperately want to find the conclusion of. I root for the families as they progress, both past and present, and even though I feel like I could guess the endings of each, I’m still compelled by my love for the characters as well as finding the ending out for myself rather than letting it remain a mystery.