In 1945 at age 15, Wiesel and his family were imprisoned in the Auschwitz concentration camp, where 90% of the people died, including Wiesel's entire family. Distraught, he could not write of his experiences for 10 years and instead worked as a journalist. Finally he produced Night, a biography of his time in the concentration camp. The biography opened the eyes of the rest of the world to the suffering he endured and raised awareness of the cruelty of the concentration camps. Until that time there had been no voice that had exposed the horrors of the massacre of the Jews and the suffering of the survivors. Today the book has been published in 30 languages and is required reading in many high school curricula. He wrote several other memiors, listed below.
In 1986 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and continuned to receive honors as he spoke up for injustice throughout the world. The following is a quote from his Nobel Peace Prize Acceptance speech:
"I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented." You can read the comple speech as well as see the video at the Nobel Prize site
Other memiors:
And the Sea is Never Full: memoirs 1969
All rivers run to the sea : memoirs
Other books by and about Elie Wiesel can be found by searching: Elie Wiesel
Originally Posted by LindaD on July 2, 2016