Maus

Guide Note

Originally an underground comic strip, Maus: A Survivor's Tale is a two-volume Holocaust memoir in graphic novel form that was written and illustrated by Art Spiegelman.

Fast Facts

1. Author: Art Spiegelman
2. Genre: Nonfiction/Graphic Novel
3. Publication Date: 1973-1991
4. Publisher: Pantheon Books
5. Pages: 160 (Vol. 1), 135 (Vol. 2)
6. ISBN 0394541553 (Vol. 1), ISBN 0394556550 (Vol. 2)
7. Awards/Distinctions: Pulitzer Prize, Eisner Award, Harvey Award, Urhunden Prize
8. Spiegelman required a 1990 Guggenheim fellowship to complete it

Featuring anthropomorphic animals in place of typical human characters, Maus chronicles the life of Spiegelman's father, Vladek, during World War II. Vladek, a Polish Jew, explains to his son how he survived Auschwitz and managed to recover in the years following the war.

The two volumes, "My Father Bleeds History" and "And Here My Troubles Began," also examine Art's relationship with his father, whose personality gradually changed post-Auschwitz from compassionate to prejudicial.

Maus was one of the most acclaimed graphic novels of its time. The Wall Street Journal hailed Maus as the "most affecting and successful" Holocaust narrative, and The New York Times called it a "powerful" memoir.

Both Maus volumes have been nominated for National Book Critics Circle Awards, and in 1992, the second volume won "Best Graphic Album" Eisner and Harvey Awards. The first volume won the Pulitzer that same year.