Everyone goes on about this book, it's been considered one of the best comics since basically the day it came out, and it certainly lives up to the reputation.
While IÂ was worried the book may just be grossly overrated, like some books, but my main concerns were in the art & the non-fiction aspect to the comic. I'm a big non-fiction fan, don't get me wrong, but I'm so used to very cold & factual books, sometimes even comics which can make for boring reads if you're already somewhat familiar with the material, and anyone living in these days has at least seen a couple films about the holocaust caused by the Nazi's.
While, you may see things, you've seen before, you hardly have it in this much detail, and with this much personality. There's no real coldness to this book, in that, there's a lot of character presented, and the fairly meta relationship depicted in the book between the writer & his father (the main subject of the book) is interesting to watch, and like the writer, come to really understand the writers father.
There's no denying that this book is full of dreadful, horrible things, it may not shock as much as Schindler's List, but it will still shock you undoubtedly. Watching so many people in this book, fight to survive, only to be cut down by some inane coincidence, or some dreadful human being, is just soul crushing at times, but never overwhelming. A lot of people die, but the book is very upfront about peoples fates, and never seems to take advantage or exploit the mystery or tension between someones survival. You learn up front that both the writer's parents survive (and some smaller details of their post-war life) & that they had a boy who died, during the war.
A terrific book, that despite the quite depressing subject, reads extremely easily, and is one of the best & detailed depictions of someones personal experience during this horrible time, that I've ever seen.
