Italian · b. 1919
Primo Levi was an Italian chemist and writer, a survivor of Auschwitz whose memoir If This Is a Man is among the most important and humane works of Holocaust literature.
Primo Levi was a young Jewish chemist when he was deported to Auschwitz in 1944. He survived, and devoted much of his life to bearing witness with extraordinary clarity, restraint, and moral intelligence.
His memoir If This Is a Man (also published as Survival in Auschwitz) and its sequel The Truce are landmarks of Holocaust literature, rendered with a scientist’s precision and a deep humanity. The Periodic Table, structured around chemical elements, blends memoir and reflection and is regarded as one of the finest science-infused books ever written.
Levi is honored as one of the great witnesses of the twentieth century, whose lucid, humane testimony resists despair while refusing to look away.
by Primo Levi
Primo Levi's luminous memoir in twenty-one chapters, each named for a chemical element. A chemist and Auschwitz survivor, Levi weaves the story of his life, his Piedmontese Jewish heritage, his craft, and his survival into a meditation on matter, humanity, and meaning.
Check Price on Amazon (paid link)Disclosure: Amazon links on this page are affiliate links. If you purchase through them we earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.