Book Review: "Night" by Elie Wiesel

I've read this one before but it was a while back now. It was definitely time for a reread because since a couple of years' ago, I have been seeing it everywhere. Forgive me for this statement of pure idiocy but: the 'universe' was telling me to reread this book. I honestly forgot how upsetting this book was, some of the images are just harrowing and the fact that it is a real account of what happened from a person who was actually there just makes it all the more horrifying. So without further introduction, let us explore one of the most important books of the 20th century...

Elie Wiesel's account of the Holocaust is a first-person perspective which actually happened. He was once just a Jewish teenager living in the small town of Sighet, wanting to continue his religious education - he was also very much aware of the encroaching fascism of the 1940s. There's a huge amount of tension as one of the members of the community explains how his whole family was exterminated and yet, nobody seems to believe it could happen where they are. But then fascism is elected, the war is not ending and the Nazis are getting closer. As the Nazis get closer, you definitely feel this amount of terror for the Jewish families living in Sighet. When the police turn up and people are forced outside in the middle of the night, you see people come together to help each other leave without a full knowledge of where they are going. You see people not wanting to be split up and this terrifying forced resilience. It puts a lot into perspective and honestly, every time it just saddens me.

There's a scene in the book which I always think is simply horrifying. It's where they're on the train and this boy's mother is screaming about a fire. She keeps screaming and screaming and everyone thinks she is mad. People look at her with fear and they don't see or smell any fire. That's until they get to Auschwitz. The first thing they smell is the unmistakable stench of burning flesh and of course, they see the smoke. Yet, they still don't fully know what is in store for them. The way there is a sense of disbelief that any human being could do this to another human being shows that even though Jewish people had been treated fairly horribly for a long time by this point, they didn't think anyone would try to exterminate them. You really do have to hold back tears at this point.

Then came the execution scenes. Public executions, including those of children, make for a devastating scene. Even though it is a short book, I do wager you to read this whole thing in one go. You do have to, from time to time, put it down and just stare at the wall. It sort of brought the memories of reading it the first time flowing back and of course, I remember how it put the fear of god into me much like how All Quiet on the Western Front did. As Elie goes through the book, he definitely uses his father as an emotional anchor, often stating that if he died then it would definitely kill his father. I do like the idea of this strong family bond, but what a thing to bond over. It doesn't make it any less terrifying.

Elie's father eventually dies of exhaustian at the camp and the author describes his father's death with a quivering simplicity in which he states his son's name - a son that is powerless to save him no matter how much he wants to. Death is quite literally everywhere but in this single moment, everything else becomes silent as Elie's hollowness reaches a limit unheard of - the ties to his familial roots slowly coming undone though his sense of responsibility to himself does not fade away. He becomes emotionally numb and the reader is left to wrestle with what ideas may be going through his head at this point.

The reread of this book was a sad one to say the least. I'm probably going to read something happier now, but you all know that's also not going to happen. If you ever get the chance to read this book then I hope you pick it up. It is devastating emotionally, psychologically and just plain heartbreaking. However, apart from this, it is written wonderfully and makes for a compelling narrative.