Holocaust Literature and Jewish Horror

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Quote Originally Posted by miguel1984

I have not yet read the graphic novel Death Strikes: The Emperor of Atlantis, written by Dave Maass and illustrated by Patrick Lay and Ezra Rose, but it was inspired by the opera Der Kaiser Von Atlantis, by Peter Kien and Viktor Ullmann, who wrote it while being imprisoned in the Theresienstadt concentration camp. Both were later murdered in Auschwitz.

I've never heard of it. I'll have to research it. I wasn't aware of The Plot by Will Eisner either. I have that waiting for me at the library when I head over there. Speaking of graphic novels, I should probably reread Maus by Art Spiegelman. It has been many years since I've read it. It was a landmark graphic novel when it came out.

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(Centipede Press edition art)

James Herbert's novel The Spear is about a neo-Nazi cult operating in Britain, and their dark obsession with resurrecting Heinrich Himmler through occult practices. Himmler was deeply into the occult in real life. I've never read the novel, but I did read the below "non-fiction" work related to it. It was a fun read but a bunch of nonsense, imo. I do remember an interesting, bastardized quote from Heinrich Heine.

" Once the restraining talisman of the Christian cross is broken in Germany, the frenzied madness of the ancient warriors, that insane Berserk rage of which Nordic bards have sung, will return again. The ancient stone gods will rise from the forgotten ruins and rub the dust of a thousand years from their eyes, and Thor with his giant hammer will smash the Gothic cathedrals. When that time comes, a sound will arise in Germany as none before heard in history."

(written prior to WWI)

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A few more books that I found.




One of Celan's most anthologized poems:

Death Fugue by Paul Celan - Famous poems, famous poets. - All Poetry

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Artist Bronislaw Linke.
"The Prayer of the Killed" (1942)

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Quote Originally Posted by miguel1984

I have not yet read the graphic novel Death Strikes: The Emperor of Atlantis, written by Dave Maass and illustrated by Patrick Lay and Ezra Rose, but it was inspired by the opera Der Kaiser Von Atlantis, by Peter Kien and Viktor Ullmann, who wrote it while being imprisoned in the Theresienstadt concentration camp. Both were later murdered in Auschwitz.

I just read this. Twice! It is outstanding. Thank you for bringing it to my attention, miguel1984.

I also read The Plot by Will Eisner. A very informative and entertaining read.

[miguel1984]

Quote Originally Posted by bendk

Quote Originally Posted by miguel1984 I have not yet read the graphic novel Death Strikes: The Emperor of Atlantis, written by Dave Maass and illustrated by Patrick Lay and Ezra Rose, but it was inspired by the opera Der Kaiser Von Atlantis, by Peter Kien and Viktor Ullmann, who wrote it while being imprisoned in the Theresienstadt concentration camp. Both were later murdered in Auschwitz. I just read this. Twice! It is outstanding. Thank you for bringing it to my attention, miguel1984. I also read The Plot by Will Eisner. A very informative and entertaining read.

You're welcome. I haven't read Death Strikes yet, mostly because I was busy finishing Kabuki by David Mack; it took me a year and a half to finish it. You should read Judenhass by Dave Sim; it is fairly short and available for free online, per Sim's wishes.

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I read one play by Eli Wiesel called The Trial of God. He based it on a similar event that he witnessed when he was in Auschwitz. He changed the setting, but the story is the same.
The play is set in a Ukrainian village in the year 1649, shortly after a devastating pogrom. A Jewish innkeeper and his daughter are among the few survivors of the pogrom. Three traveling Jewish artists arrive in the village to perform a play. The innkeeper demands that the actors stage a mock trial to indict God for His perceived silence in the face of evil.
Witnesses are heard, evidence is presented, and conclusions are drawn—all leading to a verdict. (no spoilers)
The play grapples with theodicy—the question of why a benevolent God allows suffering and evil.

I had a chance to see Eli Wiesel speak at Kent State University many years ago, but I just got over a bout of pneumonia and was still constantly coughing. I didn't want to ruin it for other people, so I didn't go. What a bummer.

I guess there are many plays that deal with the Holocaust.

Holocaust Theater Catalog | Theater works relating to the Holocaust from 1933 to the present

Some of Ilka Schönbein's puppet plays could probably be included.

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As soon as I saw this book, I knew I wanted to read it. It is such a perfect fit for TLO and this thread. Despite its 180 pages, I breezed through it in two days.
Although this short novel is advertised as being geared toward a younger audience, the themes it deals with are very mature and disturbing. The book begins with this epigraph:

"The decision had to be made to annihilate... every Jewish child and to make this people disappear from the face of the earth. This is being accomplished."
-Heinrich Himmler, chief hangman of the Nazi Holocaust, and leader of the dreaded German SS squads, in a 1943 speech. Strutting about in black uniforms, SS killers wore death-skull insignias on their caps.

The novel is set just after World War II. The story revolves around an American soldier who remains in Europe after the war. He is a ventriloquist, but not particularly talented. One day, he discovers in his closet that his dummy is inhabited by the ghost of a young boy named Avrom Amos Poliakov —a dybbuk, which is a Jewish ghost or spirit. Avrom was killed by the Nazis during the war, and he has unfinished tasks. Determined to complete them, Avrom asks him if he can inhabit his body during performances. He reluctantly agrees, and suddenly, his ventriloquist act becomes a great success with Avrom’s presence. The crowds grow larger as Avrom uses these opportunities to seek out his killer among the audience.

There is some levity in the banter with the dummy.

An interesting aside. I read something that Jon could enlighten us on. It was this passage:

.. he opened the wicker suitcase to put a black blindfold over the dummy's eyes for the night. It was tradition. The ancient Greeks believed the spirit of the dead escaped through the eyes. It was the least a ventriloquist could do.

I initially couldn't find the passage, so I asked ChatGPT is if it could remember what it said. This was its reply:

Certainly! In the novel “The Entertainer and the Dybbuk” by Sid Fleischman, there is a fascinating detail about placing an eye mask on a ventriloquist dummy when it is stored in its case. The protagonist, Freddie, discovers that when he covers the dummy’s eyes with a mask, it prevents the dybbuk (the ghostly presence inhabiting the dummy) from seeing the world. This clever technique allows Freddie to control when the dybbuk can observe and interact with the surroundings. By covering the dummy’s eyes, Freddie effectively limits the dybbuk’s awareness, ensuring that it remains dormant until needed for performances or other purposes. It’s a small but significant element in the story, adding to the eerie and mysterious atmosphere of the novel.

I didn't remember any of this, so I reread it. Nothing like this is in the book. It was completely made up by the AI. wtf?

	TLO THOMAS LIGOTTI ONLINE