Maus by Art Spiegelman

Title: Maus: A Survivor's Tale
Author: Art Spiegelman
ISBN: 9780394747231
Publisher: Pantheon Books
Copyright Date: 1986
Genre: Graphic Novel; Autobiography

About the Author:
Art Spiegelman is co-founder/editor of Raw, the acclaimed magazine of avant-garde comics and graphics. His work has been published in the New York Times, Playboy, the Village Voice, and many other periodicals, and his drawings have been exhibited in museums and galleries here and abroad. Honors he has received for Maus include a Guggenheim fellowship, and nomination for the National Book Critics Circle Award. Mr. Spiegelman lives in New York City with his wife, Francoise Mouly, and their daughter, Nadja.
Spiegelman, A. (1986). Maus: A Survivor's Tale. New York: Pantheon Books.

Curriculum Ties:

• Analyze how an author’s choices concerning how to structure a text, order events within it (e.g., parallel plots), and manipulate time (e.g., pacing, flashbacks) create such effects as mystery, tension, or surprise.
• Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how an author uses rhetoric to advance that point of view or purpose.

Plot Summary:

The story of Maus is told in two parts, and is about a son, Art Spiegelman, interviewing his father, Vladek, about his life. His father was a Jew who lived during WW2, and the story begins by Art talking to his father about wanting to know about his life. Vladek begins by talking about how he met Art’s mother, Anja. Anja does have some mental problems, and they go to a sanitarium to help her. Shortly after, they are plunged into the war, with Vladek being drafted to fight the Germans before being captured. After Germany officially defeats Sosnowiec he is released. He and Anja later work to hide themselves and others from the Germans to avoid being sent to Auschwitz. They are eventually captured, and sent there, with them being separated from each other when they arrive. The present day story discusses Art feelings and issues stemming from the emotional problems of dealing with his parents’ struggles stemming from these experiences. 

Critical Evaluation:

The plot of Maus is a particularly bleak one. Even the characters who survive are scarred by their experiences, and this is carried over to the author’s life, though he was not personally involved in the Auschwitz imprisonment. He even confesses that his mother’s suicide hurt him badly, talking about how she killed him when she killed herself. As such, the portrayal of the story in graphic novel format is interesting. By drawing it, the story becomes a little more personal, with the audience seeing the characters. However, by keeping the drawings in black and white, and imagining the Jews as mice and the Germans as cats, there is a little distance from the actual events, making it easier for the audience, and presumably the author, to deal with the terrible things that have occurred. This struggle to deal with these issues is a common theme among the stories, with the author depicting himself meeting a psychologist to deal with the effects of these experiences. 

Readers Annotation:
Maus is a powerful story of a man dealing with his family's experiences with the concentration camps in WW2. Depicting the different characters as animals in this graphic novel, it is an important autobiography of some of the worst atrocities of WW2.

Book Talking Ideas:

• Talk about the traumas that Vladek and his family have experienced. Look for how they deal with these issues in the story.
• Discuss the Holocaust and the terrible things that happened during it. Have readers look for how these experiences continue to haunt the characters. 

Reading Level/Interest Age: 14-Adult

Challenge Issues:

• A few sexual references, particularly at the beginning of the story.
• Extensive violence, including shooting, murder, and beatings.

Defense Collection:

• After a Quarter-Century, an Author Looks Back at His Holocaust Comic. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/13/books/metamaus-by-art-spiegelman-review.html?_r=0
• Institute for Historical Review. Maus: A Survivor's Tale. http://www.ihr.org/jhr/v07/v07p478_reilly.html
• Book of a lifetime: Maus by Art Spiegelman. http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/book-of-a-lifetime-maus-by-art-spiegelman-8432097.html.
• Reconsideration Policy
• Freedom to Read Statement
• ALA Library Bill of Rights
• Springville Public Library Collection Development Policy
• The Library Director and designated staff actively evaluate and select materials. The Springville Public Library Board, acting under the authority given to it by Title 4, Chapter 6 of the Springville Municipal Code and Title 09 of the Utah State Code, has the ultimate responsibility for the determination of the policies for selection and acquisition of materials.
• Library materials are selected based on the following (not necessarily in order of priority):
• Local public demand and usage potential
• Popularity
• Subject coverage
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• Accuracy and currency
• Presentation, readability and format
• Point of view (all sides)
• Cost
• Local connection
• Social values
• Collection balance
• To assess the item based on the above criteria, staff utilize:
• Nationally recognized and relevant pre-publication reviews
• Staff expertise
• Bestseller lists

Purpose in Collection:

This is an interesting story of some of the experiences in WW2, told in a way that is different from a traditional method. It is a book used in schools, making it a good resource to have in the library.