Night - the book

'Night' by Elie Wiesel is a powerful read, following the narrator from the period leading up to his deportment to a concentration camp through his freedom.

The book has been translated a number of times - I read the more recent translation by his wife, who the author feels best understands his 'voice'.

The translation I read was quite short (~100 pages) but took me a while to read. I kept stopping to think about what I was reading. It was interesting to try to get into the mindset of the the narrator. I knew why they were being moved to the ghettos, but they didn't. At what point would I secretly wish I didn't' have to support a sick parent? Fascinating to think about.

The author also spends some time thinking about God. He was a religious child, and throughout the experience, there was much talk of God abandoning them, and at what point they stopped praying for those who had died.

Really interesting. I like that it was short and easy to read, so accessible to most readers.