This is the first book I've read that made me want to cry. Even though I had seen the film and of course the title gives it away that he survives.
I liked that there had been an appendix added to the book that told you more about the German officer that helped numerous people escape from the Nazis not just Szpilman.
For me one of the most heartbreaking parts is a sentence at the end of the third chapter 'There was a special section devoted to the Jews: they were guaranteed all their rights, the inviolability of their property, and that their lives would be absolutely secure.'