Day

Day by Elie Wiesel

Also included in the Night Trilogy, Day takes a much different approach than Dawn in keeping with the exploration of the author's feelings and views on the world after living in German concentration camps for a year. In this novel the main character, Eliezer, has also survived time in the concentration camps, losing his family in the process. Following the war, the young man is suffering from a lack of will to live. Nothing he does or experiences seems to bring him joy anymore, and he can't stop picturing his family members who have died. On the way to see a movie one day with the woman he is seeing, Eliezer is hit by a taxi as he is crossing the road towards the theatre. During his time recovering in the hospital, Eliezer is plagued by the desire to die, despite various conversations with friends and his doctor in an attempt to convince him otherwise. This is a question that has been on the mind of the author, Elie Wiesel, for some time: "Does life have meaning after Auschwitz?".

Again, I wasn't entertained by the story but definitely respected the idea brought across by the author. After surviving and witnessing such horrible examples of what mankind is capable of, is life really worth living? I can say that I enjoyed this novel much more than Dawn. In hindsight, I'm glad that I read these three novels together, and although out of the three I would only be inclined to recommend Night, I can admit that I would now be inclined to recommend getting the Night Trilogy and reading all three, only because I think it gives a good idea of what happens to survivors in the aftermath. Through the two novels Dawn and Day, Elie Wiesel is exploring the what-ifs that have plagued him for a long time and I think that is important to consider when you think about the ordeal he went through - what happens after it is over?