Maus: Part III (Final)

     I have just finished Maus and I must say, it's a pretty great read. A lot of what happens in the last chapters are very reminiscent of Night. It goes into great detail to explain how hard the Jews had to struggle in order to avoid death by the Gestapo. In 1943, Jews in the Sosnowiec Ghettos are evacuated and sent to Srodula. Since the children are believed to no longer be safe staying in the area, Valdek and Anja, send their son, Richieu to go live in Zowierice with his aunt, Tosha. The other children in the family, Bibi and Lonia go along to live with Tosha. Soon after the children start living in Zowierice, Tosha hears news that the Gestapo will be sending the residents of the ghetto to Auschwitz. In response to this, Tosha poisons the children along with herself. She does this to avoid death at the hands of the Gestapo.

     Vladek and Anja travel for miles and miles, hiding in the barns and basements of kindhearted Poles they encounter on along the way. They are later put on a train to Auschwitz after they are caught and arrested by the Gestapo. Upon arrival at Auschwitz, the men and the women are separated. As a result, Vladek and Anja don't see each other again until after the war. The story then switches back to present day. After hearing about his mother having a personal journal she kept during the war, Art begs Vladek to reveal where it is kept. Vladek, after much hesitation, reveals that that he destroyed the journal along with other items she kept during the war. Art angrily responds by yelling and called Vladek a "murderer." Vladek explains to Art that he only did it because it reminded him too much of Anja. After further discussion, Art apologizes and departs. While walking home, Art repeats with resentment, "murderer."


I thoroughly enjoyed Maus. The pictures really helped emphasize the meaning of the story. I definitely recommend this to anyone whose enjoys learning about the Holocaust and WWII or anyone who simply likes comic books.