4.5

I picked this up after a friend lent me the film, which by the way was amazing, and I was not disappointed at all. Szpilman tells of his experiences in such a way that it is easy to read, despite the horrific subject matter, and that takes you to the heart of his story without overwhelming you with the events and emotions of the time. Szpilman has a kind of emotional detachment that reminds me of Levi Primo’s work. This detachment allows the reader to experience what he did in a way where survival instinct takes over at a time where grieving was not possible as it would be in normal circumstances.

Szpilman’s language and prose is both graphic and reserved, providing the reader with the sense of what it was like, giving those little details that make it all the more real in the reader’s mind without over emphasising or trying to make something out of nothing. It is written as it was and nothing more. This style of writing makes every word all the more poignant as Szpilman doesn’t try to preach, justify or judge, he simply describes.

This work not only shows the utter cruelty and greed that the human race is capable of, it also shows the compassion and bravery of those who tried to help in anyway they could, despite the risks to themselves and their loved ones. As Szpilman struggles to survive he is aided along the way by many others who, without having to and without prompting, went out of their way to help him and others like him survive the Nazi regime, including a Nazi officer, Wilm Hosenfeld.

The extracts of Hosenfeld’s diary at the end of this work adds a certain level of depth and balance to the work and shows that although many were wearing a Nazi uniform, they didn’t necessarily abide by their rules and beliefs. His diary extracts show his disillusionment with the regime and his disgust at the programme of relocation, concentration camps and ultimately extermination of those groups of people deemed sub-human by the regime. His words and actions show that there were many ‘Oskar Schindlers’ around during the war that worked hard and risked much to save those in need.

A vivid insight into one of the biggest humanitarian atrocities in human history that shows how brutality, cruelty and greed can infect a nation and lead them down a very dark path and how compassion, empathy and kindness continues to battle through no matter what the circumstances.