The Voice of Memory: Interviews, 1961-1987

by Primo Levi, Robert Gordon (Translator)

In a book John Leonard calls "remarkable" and Michael Ignatieff describes as "invaluable," The Voice of Memory collects thirty-six interviews with bestselling author Primo Levi―many of them completely new to English-speaking readers. This book reveals a varied and complex picture of the acclaimed writer, encompassing Levi the Holocaust witness, the writer, the chemist, the mountain climber, the intellectual, the political polemicist, the atheist, and the Jew. Hailed by David Denby as "one of the outstandingly beautiful and moving writers of our time," Levi emerges here in a rich, contradictory, and essentially human light. His status as perhaps the most important of the survivor-writers of the Holocaust is enhanced still further by his many voices speaking in this remarkable book.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Holocaust

336 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Primo Levi was an Italian Jewish chemist, writer, and Holocaust survivor whose literary work has had a profound impact on how the world understands the Holocaust and its aftermath. Born in Turin in 1919, he studied chemistry at the University of Turin and graduated in 1941. During World War II, Levi joined the Italian resistance, but was captured by Fascist forces in 1943. Because he was Jewish, he was deported to the Auschwitz concentration camp in 1944, where he endured ten harrowing months before being liberated by the Red army.

After the war, Levi returned to Turin and resumed work as a chemist, but also began writing about his experiences. His first book, If This Is a Man (published in the U.S. as Survival in Auschwitz), is widely regarded as one of the most important Holocaust memoirs ever written. Known for its clarity, restraint, and moral depth, the book offers a powerful testimony of life inside the concentration camp. Levi went on to write several more works, including The Truce, a sequel recounting his long journey home after liberation, and The Periodic Table, a unique blend of memoir and scientific reflection, in which each chapter is named after a chemical element.

Throughout his writing, Levi combined scientific precision with literary grace, reflecting on human dignity, morality, and survival. His later works included fiction, essays, and poetry, all characterized by his lucid style and philosophical insight. Levi also addressed broader issues of science, ethics, and memory, positioning himself as a key voice in post-war European literature.

Despite his success, Levi struggled with depression in his later years, and in 1987 he died after falling from the stairwell of his apartment building in Turin. While officially ruled a suicide, the exact circumstances of his death remain a subject of debate. Nevertheless, his legacy endures. Primo Levi’s body of work remains essential reading for its deep humanity, intellectual rigor, and unwavering commitment to bearing witness.

Reviews

[Kirsty · Rating 3 out of 5]

The preface to The Voice of Memory is written by Robert Gordon. It focuses upon Levi – ‘the essential chronicler of Auschwitz’ – and those elements which Gordon believes to be of the utmost importance in order to fully understand the author’s character. He aims to show a ‘fuller, more varied and more complex picture’ of Levi, ranging from the Holocaust witness to the intellectual, from the atheist to the Jew. Gordon believes that Levi’s stance and disposition allowed him ‘to bridge the gap between the “Jewish” Holocaust and the wider world looking on’.

Thirty six interviews are included in this collection, conducted between 1961 and 1987 and selected from over 200 given by Levi over a 25 year period. Gordon cites how important these interviews were to Levi, who viewed them as ‘an extension of the art of storytelling’. Each of the interviews has a ‘wide range of different interlocutors, from journalists and critics to students and fellow writers’, thus creating a far-reaching book which is not monotonous in any way.

The interviews are not set out in the form of transcripts, but rather as separated paragraphs for ease of reading. It is clear throughout who each of the speakers is. Each focuses upon a different aspect or period of Levi’s life. The contents are varied, ranging from a conversation about ‘Poetry to Computers’ to interviews about his books, his translations of The Trial by Franz Kafka, and his thoughts of how he managed to survive in the most notorious death camp of the Second World War.

The book is split into six sections which have a wide array of headings – ‘English Encounters’, ‘Life’, ‘Books’, ‘Literature and Writing’, ‘Auschwitz and Survival’ and ‘Judaism and Israel’. Each of these sections is of a manageable length, and as none of the interviews are overly long, the volume is accessible and easy to read.

The intended audience of The Voice of Memory is students and scholars of contemporary literature, as well as fans of Levi’s writing who are interested in his life. A brief outline of Levi’s biography has been given, from his birth in 1919 to his joining of an anti-Fascist group which led to his deportation to Auschwitz in 1944, to his later career.

[R. Allain · Rating 5 out of 5]

In more reasonable times, a book largely filled with interviews from an Auschwitz survivor might appeal mostly to academics or Levi's most ardent readers. Today, however, when virulent forces like white supremacy, Trumpism and imperialistic Russia threaten to dash the guardrails and structure of democracy - to say nothing of destroying countless lives - Primo Levi's voice seems fresh and timely. Yet some may resist such an assessment - conceding perhaps that while the Holocaust may have exterminated 6 million people, most of them like Levi, Jewish, its significance is mostly dated. And such perspectives might have more traction if it weren't for books like this one, The Voice of Memory, Interviews, 1961-1987 - and it's principal figure, Levi himself. These days, for example, when terms like Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Survivor's Guilt are often bandied about, one may be hard-pressed to witness their considerable burden up close; they're usually just sound bites. But aren't most people curious, on some level, about how such weighty psychological impact the sufferer? Based on the many probing interviews in this book, one detects Auschwitz' long insidious shadow often - one that could easily destroy or silence one of it's rare survivors. Yet too we wonder: Could any messenger from actual Sheol speak to us? Wouldn't such a voice be likely bitter or mangled, deformed by unspeakable atrocity? Well, suffice it to say Primo Levi's voice reflects little horror. Though he deeply experienced humankind's worst chapter, recording its ugly contours elsewhere, he consistently interviews here like but a thoughtful, eclectic thinker and writer (who also spent decades as a chemist) - and, oh yes, one year in a German-designed and executed hell. So if you want to experience and learn from a very fertile and decent mind, one that speaks to our tumultuous era, slowly peruse this book. And strive to prevent his nightmare from one day visiting us as well.

[Garryvivianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Primo Levi, a Jewish physicist, was a man of many hats. He was an author, an holocaust survivor, a chemist, a revolutionary, an atheist, a manager of a factory, a poet, a man of deep intellect. This book is composed of about 30 some interviews with Levi, with questions being asked about everything he did, about all the books he wrote. Of course the most well known and most asked about persona that Primo Levi was, was his being a prisoner of the Holocaust.

He was talked into joining as a young man, a resistance group in Turin Italy by some friends. And they were caught & put on a train to the camps. He just accepted that all this was supposed to happen. He attributes his survival to his being a chemist & physicist, they needed his expertise. He had a very different attitude about the camps, about what happened. And yet, he knew he was one of the lucky ones, he was able to leave the camps, go back to his actual home in Turin & remain there.

This is not to say that he accepted it all, how can one accept that? He just seemed somehow more "calm". Not sure if that is the word. That experience compelled him to write "Survival in Auschwitz", then 15 years later, "The Reawakening".

A quote from this amazing man..." I believe in reason and discussion as the supreme instruments of progress. Thus, when describing the tragic world of Auschwitz, I have deliberately assumed the calm and sober language of the witness, not the lamenting tones of the victim or the irate voice of someone who seeks revenge. I thought that my account would be more credible and useful the more it appeared objective, the less it sounded overly emotional; only in this way does a witness in matters of justice perform his task, which is that of preparing the ground for the judge. The judges are my readers."

What a very interesting man, will have to read some of his books.

[Scott Bradley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like Primo Levi. His voice is distinct in the Canon of Holocaust (a term he dislikes) literature. I should have known to pass on a collection of interviews with him, though. "The Voice of Memory" is a collection of interesting people, asking interesting questions, of an interesting man.

But here's the problem. The questions being asked are the same over and over and over. Levi's responses are also the same. He is constant and that is to his credit, although he does admit to a necessary evolution that occurred after he left the camp, and wandered until he made his way back to Italy. The consistency of questions and answers leads to far too much repetition in this collection. Over and over, I was thinking "wait. Didn't I just read that?" And that is never a good thing.

I would stick with Levi's primary works. They are both aching and wonderful and I think should be considered required reading.

I will admit to this. While reading "The Voice of Memory", I looked for the hint that Levi would take his own life in 1987 in his beloved home city of Turin. I never found it. I never found a hint of suicidal ideation. I never found despair. Levi has been criticized for an optimistic view of humanity. I'm not sure it's optimistic. It just isn't desolate. That he would take his life shortly after these interviews will remain a mystery and a tragic loss. I am left wondering.

[Anderstu]

No slight against Mr. Levi. The interviews are individually entertaining, as glimpses into the mind of someone unique by almost any standard, to include uniquely humane (without being a saint to irritate Orwell). The interviews, at least the first ten or so that I read, are repetitive. How many times can I hear that Mr. Levi was a practicing chemist? Obviously necessary groundword for an independent work of interview, but a piece of the larger problem with the book - it's the same interview, with variations, over and over. By all means read one or two, or five, but at ten I ran out of steam.

[Ryan Mishap · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interviews with Primo Levi,a ctually, and well worth your time as you get more information about him than even his memoir (The Periodic Table) offered. Many interesting ideas and points along the way, too.

[Scott Bradley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like Primo Levi. His voice is distinct in the Canon of Holocaust (a term he dislikes) literature. I should have known to pass on a collection of interviews with him, though. "The Voice of Memory" is a collection of interesting people, asking interesting questions, of an interesting man.

But here's the problem. The questions being asked are the same over and over and over. Levi's responses are also the same. He is constant and that is to his credit, although he does admit to a necessary evolution that occurred after he left the camp, and wandered until he made his way back to Italy. The consistency of questions and answers leads to far too much repetition in this collection. Over and over, I was thinking "wait. Didn't I just read that?" And that is never a good thing.

I would stick with Levi's primary works. They are both aching and wonderful and I think should be considered required reading.

I will admit to this. While reading "The Voice of Memory", I looked for the hint that Levi would take his own life in 1987 in his beloved home city of Turin. I never found it. I never found a hint of suicidal ideation. I never found despair. Levi has been criticized for an optimistic view of humanity. I'm not sure it's optimistic. It just isn't desolate. That he would take his life shortly after these interviews will remain a mystery and a tragic loss. I am left wondering.

[Nevin Thompson]

Some very good background on Levi, his experiences, and his philosophical upbringing. The "collected interview" format makes it a bit repetitive.