"Wait a little, Zalman. Soon, we will come to a halt. We cannot run like this to the end of the world... Make an effort, Zalman... Try."

"He collapsed. But his fist was still clutching a small crust. He wanted to raise it to his mouth. But the other threw himself on him. The old man mumbled something, groaned, and died. Nobody cared."

"Suddenly, the evidence overwhelmed me: there was no longer any reason to live, any reason to fight."

" He awoke with a start. He sat up, bewildered, stunned, like an orphan. He looked all around him, taking it all in as if he had suddenly decided to make an inventory of his universe, to determine where he was and how and why he was there. Then he smiled"

"Where is merciful God, where is He?... someone behind me was asking."

"I went up to him, took his hand and kissed it. I felt a tear on my hand. Whose was it? Mine? His? I said nothing. Nor did he. Never before had we understood each other so clearly."

"But I felt myself to be stronger than this Almighty to whom my life had been bound for so long. In the midst of these men assembled for prayer, I felt like an observer, a stranger."

"I watched other hangings. I never saw a single victim weep. Their withered bodies had long forgotten the bitter taste of tears."

"I had watched it all happening without moving. I kept silent. In fact, I thought of stealing away in order not to suffer the blows. What's more if I felt anger at that moment, it was not directed at the kapo but at my father. "

"Like a sword, the order cut through the air: 'Caps off !' Ten thousand prisoners paid their respect. 'Cover your heads!' "

"I knew a rabbi, from a small town in Poland. He was old and bent, his lips constantly trembling.... One day, he said to me: "It's over. God is no longer with us."

" 'Here, take this knife,' he said. 'I won't need it anymore. You may find it useful. Also take this spoon. Don't sell it. Quickly! Go ahead, take what I'm giving you!' "

"He was totally devoted to defending "his" block. Whenever he could, he would "organize" a cauldron of soup for the young, for the week, for all those who dreamed more of an extra portion of food than liberty."

"As for me, I had ceased to pray. I concurred with Job! I was not denying His existence, but I doubted His absolute justice."

"I looked up at my father's face, trying to glimpse a smile or something like it on his stricken face. But there was nothing. Not the shadow of an expression. Defeat."

"And he began beating him with an iron bar... I had watched it all happening without moving."

"What are you, my God? I thought angrily. How do you compare to this stricken mass gathered to affirm to you their faith, their anger, their defiance?"

"But we no longer feared death, in any event not this particular death. Every bomb that hit filled us with joy, gave us renewed confidence."

"My eyes had opened and I was alone...Without love or mercy. I was nothing but ashes now..."

"One more hour. Then we would know the verdict: death or reprieve. And my father? I first thought of him now. How would he pass selection? He had aged so much."

"I began to laugh. I was happy. I felt like kissing him. At that moment, the others did not matter! They had not written me down."

"I thought of stealing away in order not to suffer the blows...if I felt anger in that moment, it was not directed at the Kapo but at my father. Why couldn't he have avoided Idek's wrath?"

"For the first time, I felt anger rising within me. Why should I sanctify His name? The Almighty, the eternal and terrible Master of the Universe, chose to be silent. What was there to thank Him for?"

"And as the train stopped, this time we saw flames rising from a tall chimney into a black sky. Mrs. Schachter had fallen silent on her own. Mute again, indifferent, absent, she had returned to her corner."

"I had spent years seeking my God, fasting to hasten the coming of the Messiah, imagining what my life would be like later. Yet I felt a little sad. My mind was empty."

"'Your age?' he asked, perhaps trying to sound paternal. 'I'm eighteen.' My voice was trembling. 'In good health?' 'Yes.' 'Your profession?' Tell him that I was a student? 'Farmer,' I heard myself saying"

"The Kapos were beating us again, but I no longer felt the pain."

"Life? I no longer care to live. I am alone."

" 'All right', he said. 'I can arrange it. For a pittance: your shoes. I'll give you another pair.' ""I refused to give him my shoes. They were all I had left."

"The Almighty, the eternal and terrible Master of the Universe, chose to be silent. What was there to thank Him for?"

"The night before, we had sat down to the traditional Friday night meal."

"'My father wouldn't hear of it. He told me and my big sisters, "If you wish go there. I shall stay here with your mother and the little one...' Naturally, we refused to be separated."

"Father," I said. "If that is true, then I don't want to wait. I'll run into the electrified barbed wire. That would be easier than a slow death in the flames."

"Moishe was not the same. The joy in his eyes was gone."

"Still, I was happy, I was near my father".