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The first installment of the Pulitzer Prize-winning 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).

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.

Ebook Maus I A Survivor Tale My Father Bleeds History Art Spiegelman 8601401248934 Books

"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."

Product details

Series Maus (Book 1)
Paperback 159 pages
Publisher Pantheon (August 12, 1986)
Language English
ISBN-10 9780394747231
ISBN-13 978-0394747231
ASIN 0394747232

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Maus I A Survivor Tale My Father Bleeds History Art Spiegelman 8601401248934 Books Reviews :

Maus I A Survivor Tale My Father Bleeds History Art Spiegelman 8601401248934 Books Reviews

I am going to preface this review by saying that I have a general disdain for graphic novels. There was a time that I would never elect to read one of my own volition. That all changed when I was assigned Maus for an English class. Upon hearing that our syllabus included a graphic novel, I groaned in tacit protest. I read both volumes of Maus cover to cover before the assigned completion date, and was very moved by the story, which is about a son trying to understand his Holocaust-survivor father. There are no images of humans in this book--the Jews are portrayed as mice, the Nazis as cats, and the Poles as pigs. The protagonist has always felt a void between he and his father, but develops some understanding and compassion as he begins interviewing him about his experiences in the Holocaust. In terms of Holocaust literature, I would deem this a "must-read".
Browsing through the reviews and comments about Maus, I saw that there was some question as to whether the hardcover edition comprised Parts I and II. This is understandable because the product is listed in as "The Complete Maus A Survivor's Tale (No 1)," which seems contradictory.

When I was considering purchasing it, I looked at the number of pages that were listed for the edition and guessed that it included both parts of the story. So I bought it, it arrived fine, and I am now writing to confirm that yes, this edition includes I and II.

should look into this and remove the "(No 1)" from the listing's title.
I rarely read graphic novels or comics, but found this a very interesting read. The author has found a very clever way to write a feature-length comic-book novel, telling an accessible mini-history of his father's experiences during the WWII Holocaust in Poland (his father and mother being survivors of the camps), intermingled with a second "current-day" story line illustrating his father's current domestic challenges and the author's own, sometimes fraught relationship with him.

The story is extremely easy to understand and follow when laid out this way, even though I already knew most of this from a more general historical perspective. Showing different nationalities as different animals is a clever way to help keep the players straight.

I strongly disagree with the criticism leveled by other reviewers that try to assign some significance to the animals chosen for each nationality, My own belief is that the only choice meant to convey any real meaning was that of showing Jewish characters as mice and Nazis as cats, illustrating the relative "power" that the cats had over the mice, and the fact that the "mice" were always being hunted and could not even safely walk on streets where there were "cats." The one or two French were shown as frogs, the Americans were dogs, and the Poles were pigs. Those who believe the author somehow intended any of these to be broader comments on those nationalities, for better or worse, are just reading too much into it. In particular, showing Poles as pigs was not intended to be an insult, and those who think otherwise are just looking for reasons to be offended.

Some of the comic illustrations were very inventive. At some points in the story, the author's father is walking around in Poland amongst the general population (outside the Jewish ghetto, that is), and acting as though he belongs there, knowing that it will not be easy to tell he is Jewish if he acts like he belongs there; in effect, he is "masquerading" as a Pole, and the cartoons of these scenes show him with a pig mask over his normally mouse face, showing that he is passing for a Pole.

Certainly nothing about the Holocaust is anything to laugh at, and in fact, in most treatments on the subject, too much detail can sometimes overwhelm a reader. The author suspends his father's narrative at regular intervals and cuts to their present-day conversation, where they talk about his father's domestic situation, his health, his personal frugality and other habits, etc. This is a mini-drama all my itself that at times can almost be amusing, and gives the reader a periodic break from the heavier part of the story. You can also see how certain ways that his father behaves have been influenced by his experience.

This is a interesting way to learn about a part of history that too many these days seem to be strangely unaware of. (When I was growing up, everyone knew about this.) It is easily read and understood, and even at almost 300 pages, I read it in less than a day.
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.

Ebook Maus I A Survivor Tale My Father Bleeds History Art Spiegelman 8601401248934 Books

Ebook Maus I A Survivor Tale My Father Bleeds History Art Spiegelman 8601401248934 Books

Ebook Maus I A Survivor Tale My Father Bleeds History Art Spiegelman 8601401248934 Books

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Maus I A Survivor Tale My Father Bleeds History Art Spiegelman 8601401248934 Books Reviews :

Maus I A Survivor Tale My Father Bleeds History Art Spiegelman 8601401248934 Books Reviews

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