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Customer Reviews of Dawn

disturbing
This short novel was a bit difficult to take but, then, I believe that this was how the author meant it to be. It is the story of a Holocaust survivor who is now in Palestine involved in the underground efforts to wrest control of the area from the British. The man must execute a British officer and his struggles with this is the crux of the story. I was not ever quite sure how Wiesel intended us to view the "hero". At times I thought that the author wrote as though we would understand the actions of the Jewish militants. At other times, I felt he was trying to show us that violence only creates more victims. Certainly, the ending of "Dawn" was a powerful statement of the evil that can emerge from any man no matter how just the cause. I think that the author adds to his purpose by keeping us a bit off balance throughout the story. He reminds us that there are no easy answers nor easy perspectives.

Most of us are aqcuainted with the story of the creation of the Israeli nation including the non-diplomatic efforts by the militant groups. This book was copyrighted in 1961 at a time when the events could be viewed with a somewhat different perspective. I say this because I found myself drawn to wonder how Wiesel would view a Palastinian suicide bomber. I guess it was his analytical analysis of the conflicting sides that made me wonder about this. I realize that it was not the author's point to excuse or justify the violence. However, there was a certain antiseptic approach to the subject that caused me to wonder about the modern day terrorist.

This is a story that will challenge the reader to ask themselves a question or two. It only takes a short while to read but it has a message that should last quite a while.

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From being killed to a killer
This is an amazing story. This book is billed as the second of a trilogy. Yet, this book is not tied to the first book at all except as the holocaust as the backdrop. this time it is a young Zionist that has been given the duty of executing a British soldier being held captive in retaliation against the British for sentencing one of their leaders to death. Dawn explains the other side of the story of the one holding the gun upon somebody instead of having it held upon them. Instead of surviving as in "Night", "Dawn" is about duty. The young man struggles with his conscience over his duty and his feeling of empathy for his hostage. This is an excellent read and stands apart and alone from the first book "Night".

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"Dawn"--a powerful and ironic novel
"Dawn" is a fictional novel about a young man who survived the Holocaust in World War II. He moved to Palestine and got involved in a Jewish terrorist group. In the book he is assigned to kill a British officer named John Dawson, who has been taken captive, by dawn. Although the boy does not want to kill Dawson, he knows that he must for the sake of not disappointing his gang.
Compared to "Night," the first book in Elie Wiesel's "The Night Trilogy," "Dawn" does not have as much history. The only real history in this novel is that the main character's background involves the Holocaust. However, I thought the book was still good. I thought it was ironic how the boy was once the one who was being beaten and starved for no reason, and yet he is now the one who is harming others for no reason. He turned to the "other side." I recommend this book for pleasure reading more than catching up on the history of the Holocaust and World War II, but it is definitely a powerful and gripping book.