The Complete Maus A Survivors Tale PDF Free Download

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.