Elie WieselThe book Night opens in the city of Signet where Elie Wiesel, the author, was born. He lived his childhood in Signet, Transylvania. He had three sisters Hilda, Bea and Tzipora. His father was an honored member of the Jewish community. He was a cultured man, concerned about his community, but he was not an emotional man. His parents owned a shop and his two older sisters worked for his parents. Elie was a schoolboy and was interested in studying the Zohar “the Kabbalistic books, the secrets of Jewish mysticism” (Wiesel 3). His teacher was a foreigner, Moshe the Priest, a “poor barefoot man from Signet” (Wiesel 3). He was Elie's teacher until he was forced to leave Signet by the Hungarians because he was a foreign Jew. After several months Elie saw Moshe the Beadle once again. Moshe the Beadle told his story of his journey in which the Jews were forced to go out and dig a grave that would become the final resting place for the captives who were killed. Fortunately, Moshe the Beadle escaped. He pretended to be dead to avoid being killed. Moshe not only told his story to Elie, but wanted to warn the Jews of Signet of what might happen to them. However, they only thought it was a vivid imagination speaking from his lips. No one wanted to believe his story and people lived life as usual. It was only when German troops entered Hungarian territory that the lives of the Jews of Signet changed. At first the German soldiers did not appear to be a threat. During Easter week things seemed to be going well. People were still celebrating, it wasn't a full party. On the seventh day of Passover the Jewish leaders of the community were arrested. Later the rules were established by the Germans. The Jews were confined to their homes for three days and could no longer store valuables such as gold, jewels and other items. The Germans took everything. Elie's father managed to bury the family's savings in the cellar. After the three days the Jews had to wear a yellow star. Subsequently, further rules were established. Jews could not go to restaurants, travel by train, go to synagogues, or go out after six. As if the rules and restrictions weren't enough. Soon Jews would be locked up in ghettos. There were two jets set up at Signet. These ghettos were fenced with barbed wire and the windows of the houses facing the street were boarded up... middle of paper... last moments of his life. On January 28, 1945, Elie went to sleep and his father was still alive. When he woke up the next day, his father was no longer there (Wiesel 106). On April 11, 1945, Elie was free. The Americans settled in Buchenwald and took over the camp. The first thing free men wanted was food. They could not think about revenge or their families “Nothing but bread” (Wiesel 109). Elie fell ill with food poisoning after the liberation, almost dying. However, when he finally, after so many years, managed to get up and look at himself in the mirror, he didn't even recognize himself. All he could see was a "corpse" staring back at him. Elie Wiesel now lives in the United States under the name Andrew Mellon. He is a professor of human sciences at Boston University. He is also president of the Holocaust Remembrance Council. This organization is a non-political organization that was formed to educate people about the crimes committed against the Jewish people during the Holocaust (Chaimberlin 14). Works CitedChamberlin, Brewster and Marcia Feldman eds. The liberation of the Nazi concentration camps 1945. Government Printing Office: Washington, DC, 1987. Wiesel, Elie. Night . Bantam Books: New York, 1989 .