Listening to the Silence

Determined that his father's experiences during the Holocaust not be forgotten, comic artist Art Spiegelman, recorded his dad's history. Maus I tells the story of his father's early adulthood in Poland, as a successful textile factory owner, until he was transported to Auschwitz.

Choosing to write this story in comic form was risky, and yet it is that risk that makes it so appealling. It is a new way of sharing the horror of this time, and through the drawings we are able to physically see the fear and bleakness of the ghettos and internment camps. It also reaches those readers who are more likely to pick up a comic book than a history book. It would be a great way to expose high school students to the Holocaust as well, and I hope to see it used in my sons' classrooms.