Witness: Lessons from Elie Wiesel's Classroom

Winner of the National Jewish Book Award—Biographyxa0xa0 An Indie Next List Pickxa0 A Publishers Lunch Buzz Book "Axa0beautiful, deeply moving memoir...[a]xa0complex, multilayered book...Burger’s honest depiction of doubt — both Wiesel’s and his own — is a great strength of this memoir, and its constant concern with the limited power of the individual is timeless. While Wiesel privately worried about the power of one person’s words in the face of hatred, this book of questions and memories makes a case for the power of teaching, and for words as perhaps the ultimate teachers of how to live." — Chicago Tribune "Burger transports the reader to those salons of learning on the Charles River, where Wiesel's students over the years ranged from the granddaughter of a Nazi SS officer to a Korean minister in training...Unlike the best-selling 'Tuesdays with Morrie' – which highlighted author Mitch Albom's relationship with another Boston-area professorxa0–xa0Burger's book has a protagonist who wasxa0already world-famous. Witness does have a Wednesdays-with-Wiesel feel. Burger intersperses bits of his own life and background as he shares an album's worth of snapshots from Wiesel's time at BU. Burger's tone and execution arexa0exactly whatxa0his title promises –xa0and in keeping with the wayxa0Wiesel lived his life." — USA Toda y , "New book shares Elie Wiesel's powerful classroom lessons from the Holocaust"xa0xa0xa0 "Any reader of Witness can now become another student of Wiesel’s, and another witness, as it is clear that Ariel Burger has become a teacher with its publication." — Tablet Magazine "Inspiring and substantive...Amid all the Wiesel wisdom, Burger interweaves bits of his own autobiography, including his childhood and an account of the years he spent in Israel before his doctoral studies. Neither irrelevant nor self-indulgent, these strolls into memoir help establish Burger as a trustworthy and likable guide, a fellow learner who has invited us to sit next to him as we absorb hard-won knowledge about the shape of a good life from a sage. An insightful and winsome love letter—and, for newcomers to Wiesel, a good introduction." — Kirkus Reviews "Current, former, and future educators will love the glimpses into Wiesel’s practices, such as the way he guided discussions on difficult but important topics—the tensions between faith and doubt, the relationship between rebellion and madness, and effective strategies for activism—and the personal attention he lavished on students...Burger’s love for Wiesel, both professional and personal, shines through, and the reader will walk away with renewed admiration for this remarkable scholar, writer, survivor, and teacher." — Publishers Weekly "A student of Wiesel's, Burger recounts how Wiesel lit his mind on fire. He later became Wiesel's teaching assistant and colleague, and this book parts the curtain on Wiesel's stimulating and lively classes, which challenged students...Readers will find their own preconceptions called into question, as though they were in class, too."xa0 — Booklist “Burger, a compassionate heart, fiery soul, and sharp religious mind in his own right, presents a personal side of Wiesel that we normally didn’t see. This is the humane Wiesel, the Wiesel who nurtured students and who shook the foundations to demand mo — ARIEL BURGER is a teacher,xa0writer, and artist whose workxa0focuses on education, spirituality, the arts, and strategies for social change.xa0An ordained rabbi, Ariel received his PhD in Jewish Studies and Conflict Resolution under Elie Wiesel. A lifelong student of Professor Wiesel, Ariel served as his Teaching Fellow from 2003-2008, after which he designed educationalxa0initiatives atxa0several nonprofits. Ariel travels the world lecturing andxa0serving as a scholar/artist-in-residence, facilitating workshops for educators andxa0leaders,xa0and consulting toxa0creativexa0organizations.xa0When Ariel's not learning or teaching, he is creating music, art, and poetry. He lives outside of Boston with his family. www.arielburger.com