Book #1 Of 2025

Book #1 of 2025

Night by Elie Wiesel

I didn't set out to read a holocaust survivors account as my first book of 2025, I came across it by accident. I was at a holocaust memorial event where I hear the quote '“When you listen to a witness, you become a witness” and found the book on Spotify later that night.

Anyone who hasn't read it, read it. It's a first hand account of a fifteen year old boy who was deported to Auschwitz alongside his sister and parents. I realized in listening to it that I hadn't really read a survivor account before. It was so raw and painful and honest and deeply personal. Near the beginning of the story the author mentions that his family couldn't believe that something like the holocaust could happen in the 20th century, that people would allow it to happen or take part in it. I couldn't help thinking about the horrible things I read about that are happening today and how important these survivors accounts are.

This story will stay with me my whole life and I will continue to recommend it as long as I live.