I just started reading Night by Elie Wiesel. It’s a book I’ve heard about for a long time, and my 16-year-old daughter read it in school two years ago, so I thought it was time I read it myself.

I’ve read other of Wiesel’s boos. They’re not for the faint of heart, but they are very thought provoking and Wiesel’s voice is captivating. Some books are important to read even if you don’t expect to laugh or be amused while reading them, and I believe this is one of those books.

While reading this book in high school, members of my daughter’s class played the roles of Nazis, Jews and ordinary citizens. My daughter was assigned the role of Jew, and she wore a yellow star. While she knew it was role-playing and the consequences were not life and death, the exercise made her think of the real-world actions of the Holocaust in new ways.