An acerbic look at the Holocaust industry

In 'My Holocaust,' Tova Reich skewers those who merchandise suffering.

from the May 29, 2007 edition

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To make matters worse, Bunny wants to cheapen the Holocaust making it overly inclusive. As a first step, she plans to "hire [museum] employees of all races and religions and minorities and sexual orientations in order to elevate the Holocaust from just a Jewish hang-up with which the Jews were guilt tripping the rest of the world to the level of a universal archetype with all-purpose generic lessons and implications for everyone."

What ensues is a hilarious – and, at times, uncomfortable – commentary about the human tendency to aggrandize individual suffering and use it as a claim to any number of entitlements.

While other books have grappled with the issue of the Jewish identity and the Holocaust, addressing it as a work of satirical fiction allows Reich far more wiggle room than her contemporaries.

Controversial Jewish scholar Norman Finkelstein, himself a "second generation survivor," took on many of the same issues in his nonfiction work entitled The Holocaust Industry, which argues that the Jewish community exploits their experience in the Holocaust to gain unreasonable political and social advantages. His work was strongly criticized and pushed into the margins.

By confronting these issues in a light-hearted, fictionalized format, Reich softens the potential sting without losing any poignancy. Unlike a scholarly text, Reich is free to utilize her artistic license to make sure that no one escapes without a quick satirical lashing.

Still, underneath all of Reich's barbs, is an underlying compassion for all her characters that allows us to view someone like Maurice as a compelling character even in the midst of his sleaziest sales pitch.

If any fault can be found with the novel, it's when Reich lingers on her characters' stream of conscious meditations as they interact with one another. While these often carry the work and provide some of its most entertaining moments, at times Reich overindulges, and the story's pace lags.

Still, it's a small price to pay for those moments when Reich is at her best.

• Tom A. Peter is an intern at the Monitor.

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