Reader's Journal Non-Fiction

#23                                                 Reader’s Journal                                      2/6/12

Dear Mrs. Zrihen,

            This week I finished From A Name to A Number: A Holocaust Survivor’s Autobiography by Alter Wiener. The genre of this book is Autobiography. Autobiography is a subgenre, which falls under non-fiction; it is when a person writes a story about his or her life. In this case, Alter Wiener writes about his bitter experiences as a Holocaust survivor.

            A quote that really sparked me interest was located in the very beginning chapters of the book (kindle)

“In the death chambers, once the doors were locked, the victims had only a few minutes to live, but some had the physical and moral strength to scratch the following phrases into the walls, ‘Gedenkt unz,’ ‘Zychru otanu,’ ‘Pamietaj nas,’ ‘Ne felejes el bennunket’---remember us, remember the Nazi’s cruelty”

I chose this quote because it is what really hooked me and gave me an extreme chill feeling through my spine! It really sickened me on how severe the holocaust really was! The significance of this quote is that at it showed how much hatred people felt towards the Holocaust and Nazis’. Also, while dying, all that was going through their mind was for us to always remember what the Nazis’ did and how much they suffered.

            I used various strategies before, during and after reading this book. Before reading, I thought about all the information I already know from my background knowledge on the Holocaust and its causes. Also, I reread my past readers journal to review where I left off in the book and what I was aiming to find out. While reading, I kept track of literary elements that I missed or needed to change from my past notes. Also, I created mental images in my head during some parts of the book so that I had a great visualization to what I was reading. After reading, I compare and contrasted the books information with things I already knew about the topic. Also, I wrote down my reader’s journal and reviewed it by checking my validity and accuracy.

            The topic of this book is on a Holocaust Survivor and the main idea is stated, for those who understand the meaning of the title: “From A Name to A Number: A Holocaust Survivor’s Autobiography”. By reading the title of the book, I can immediately configure that it focuses on a Holocaust survivor’s story. Three supporting details I found that support the main idea are: “A Holocaust Survivor’s Autobiography”,” The sole purpose of writing my autobiography is to share with the readers my bitter experiences which I hope that in so doing will help them to understand the scope of what had happened during the Holocaust”, “Every Holocaust survivor has a story. I have a deep sense of having a mission to share my life story.”

Even though it wouldn’t be necessary to change the title of the book, another title I would give it is: “A Tragedy That Must Never Be Forgotten.” I would give it this title because I think it really would get others attentions on wondering what the tragedy is. Also, even though it does not mention that it is on the holocaust or an autobiography, it summarizes what Alter and others believe in and want to accomplish.

            The essential message of the book is to combat racism and prejudice whenever it appears, and with whomever it threatens. The cause and effect of this book is that if you and others always remember the holocaust and what it has done, the effect would be on it never happening again. A compare and contrast relationship I was able to make is between Alter Wiener and myself. We both are Jewish, and believe in the ending of racism and prejudice. Also, we will both never forget about the holocaust and what it has caused. Alter Wiener and I are different because he has survived and been through the holocaust, and I have not.

            I was able to identify five different text features in the book, and their impact on the text. They were:

-The title and headings, which gave the reader a hint on what the topic is.

-The subtitles explained the main ideas.

-The quotations helped me view what other people said, from their perspectives.

-The table of contents helped me locate chapters in the book, while seeing their title and how long each chapter is.

- Italicized and bold words helped me track down important and useful lines in the text.

The author’s purpose is to share with readers his personal bitter experiences in the holocaust. The author’s perspective is subjective and biased because the author gives many of his personal opinions and beliefs in the text. The point of view is written in first person because the author uses words like: I, my, etc. The pattern of organization is flashback because the author starts explaining and then goes back to the actual event.

Sadly, this book did not have any figurative language because it just shared the author’s experiences in a very accurate way.

While reading, I was able to identify five new vocabulary words and their meanings, which are:

-Perennial: long lasting.

The sentence is: “I anticipate the same from my written words-some words are nothing but tears about my perennial pain.” I identified this word by using context clue number five.

-Oblivion: being unaware/unconscious.

The sentence is: “Many memories vanished into oblivion and other memories are hard to bring out from dark cages.” I identified this word by using context clue number five.

-Odyssey: adventurous journey.

The sentence is: “It is about my tribulations during the Holocaust and its ensuing odyssey.” I identified this word by using context clue number five.

-Amid: Surrounded by.

The sentence is: “While training amid the sea of tombstones, I had creepy thoughts that someday one of the tombstones would bear my name.” I identified this word by using context clue number five.

-Lamenting: Expression of sorrow

The sentence is: “I have been lamenting for years the fact that I could not yet enough love from my mother, due to her untimely death.” Just like all other words, I identified this word by using context clue number five.

        A source I used to check the validity and accuracy was: My background knowledge on the holocaust.

            While reading, I was able to make many connections. A text-to-self connection I made with the book was that both Alter Wiener and myself are Jewish and would try our very best to spread the word on what happened in the holocaust. Another connection I was able to make was a text-to-text connection. I can relate this book to any other Holocaust related novel because they are all set on the same topic and setting. The last connection I made was to the world. I can relate this book to the world because even though there are still many holocaust survivors, people all around the world still forget or never believed that this event happened in the past and for this reason, it is mandatory for everyone to spread the word about the existence of this event.

            All in all, this book was great! I rate it a nine out of ten because I was interested and hooked throughout the entire time with the help of the authors vivid experiences! I recommend it to everyone and anyone of all ages, especially to the people who don’t really believe in the Holocausts existence. Clearly, you should really give this book a chance!

            Love,

Joelle Ben-Nissan