Night by Elie Wiesel - 4 stars

[Joy D]

Night by Elie Wiesel - 4 stars

As more people that can recall WWII leave us, it becomes more important than ever to keep the memories of the Holocaust alive. In this book, Elie Wiesel delivers a testament to his experience, his loss of faith, his guilt. It documents the horrors of the concentration camps by one who experienced it first-hand. It is a seminal book about the Holocaust and the Jewish experience, in the same company as Ann Frank’s The Diary of a Young Girl and Victor Frankl’s Man's Search for Meaning. Unfortunately, as documented in the Preface to the New Transaltion , it was significantly edited in order to get it published back in 1958, when people were “trying to move on” from this horrific period in history. I wish I could have read the original version before the editing. Highly recommended. Be prepared for gut-wrenching cruelty.

I notice JoLene also read this one.

Link to my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Anita]

I had no idea it was edited as you indicate. How sad. I still thought it was excellent, but I'm with you - - I'd have liked to read the original now that I know about it.

[Jenni Elyse]

I didn't realize this was edited either. I wonder what the original would've been like? It opened my eyes to things that other books about the Holocaust hadn't.

[Joy D]

Yes, the preface mentions the editing. It also talks about the change in attitudes from the 50's to today. Back then, the subject was considered morbid. Today, it is studied in schools.

Wiesel mentions some of the edits: the opening, the scenes during the death of his father, and the closing were originally different.

He seemed pleased with the newest translation, done by his wife.