August 24, 2010
Elie Wiesel’s The Sonderberg Case
Elie Wiesel’s new book, The Sonderberg Case, comes out today in hardcover.
In this latest work from the Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Holocaust survivor, Wiesel explores themes that will be familiar to many of his readers: memory and justice.
The book’s title refers to the prosecution of Werner Sonderberg, a young German who is accused of killing his uncle as the two hike through the Adirondack woods. A reporter sent to cover the murder trial, Yedidiyah Wasserman, tries to make sense of Sonderberg’s declaration early on that he is both guilty and innocent. Indeed, the trial itself seems like a jumping off point for chronicling Wasserman’s personal journey and psychological struggles.
None of the reviews I’ve read have called the book a hit. But, none are saying it’s a total flop either.
Here’s what Publisher’s Weekly said:
The novel is told mostly via Yedidyah’s personal reflections and each component of the story is so divorced from the next–there are no scenes, for instance, that show Yedidyah with more than one family member at a time–that it’s difficult to assemble a larger view of his life. The ambitious scope of the story, spanning generations, is compelling, but limited by the novel’s length.
Here’s an excerpt from the Richmond Times-Dispatch:
“The Sonderberg Case” isn’t an exercise in sophistry; indeed, it’s often powerfully moving. But Wiesel fails to make the book cohere as a novel.
Faced with Yedidyah’s disjointed tale, I suspect many readers will wish they could have spent more time with the enigmatic but existentially intriguing Sonderberg.
Writing for the Associated Press, Summer Moore says Wiesel’s writing chops offset the unwieldy plot:
The story line of “Sonderberg” jumps around so much it can be difficult to follow. But in the end, Wiesel’s writing makes up for it. This is a book you will read aloud to your grandchildren.
I am an avid reader of Wiesel. I have read mixed reviews on this, also, but decided to buy it. I bought the e-book, as opposed to the hard cover book. I often do this if I don’t want to have to store a book in my personal collection .