"Psalm 44" is the last major work of fiction by Danilo Kis to be translated into
English, and his only novel dealing explicitly with Auschwitz (where his own fa
ther died). Written when he was only twenty-five, before embarking on the master
pieces that would make him an integral figure in twentieth-century letters, Psal
m 44 shows Kis at his most lyrical and unguarded, demonstrating that even in "th
e place of dragons... covered with the shadow of death," there can still be poet
ry. Featuring characters based on actual inmates and warders--including the abom
inable Dr. Mengele--"Psalm 44" is a baring of many of the themes, patterns, and
preoccupations Kis would return to in future, albeit never with the same starkne
ss or immediacy.
