Der Nister Books

"A neglected masterpiece of Holocaust literature, Regrowth offers an account of Jewish life that is unsparing and unsentimental, yet full of Humanity. Der Nister-- his name a pseudonym meaning "The Hidden One"--Writes about communities in Eastern Europe at a disastrous moment in history, but his themes achieve universal dimensions. The tales in this collection refuse easy moral judgments and often blur the line between perpetrator and victim. Members of Jewish Coucils display noble motives even as they collaborate with Nazi occupiers, and resistence fighters perform acts of betrayal and violence toward their own. Neither danger nor safety appears without a mask. Like his contemporary Kafka, to whom he is often compared, Der Nister writes in a deceptively simple style that exerts a powerful hold long after one has finihsed reading. The morally complex characters and richly layered stories of Regrowth ultimately reclaim a more nuanced view of crimes still not fully reckoned."--Back cover.