Daniel Finkelstein and Nick Robinson in conversation at The Wiener Library

To mark the publication of the first English translation E. I. Bornstein’s 1967 memoir of his experiences during the Holocaust, The Long Night, The Wiener Library are delighted to welcome Daniel Finkelstein and Nick Robinson to reflect upon the role of Holocaust memoirs in education and commemoration of the Holocaust.

Finkelstein and Robinson will take Bornstein’s experiences and his memoir as the starting point for their discussions. As the number of living survivors and witnesses to the Holocaust diminishes, the importance of memoirs such as Bornstein’s can only increase. As descendants of those whose lives were shaped and affected by the rise of the Nazis and the Holocaust, Finkelstein and Robinson will reflect upon the state of Holocaust education and commemoration in Britain.

Originally written shortly after the war, Ernst Israel Bornstein’s powerful memoir, Die Lange Nacht, was originally published in German in 1967. This first English translation has been completed by his daughter, Noemie Lopian. Professor Dan Stone has commented of the book that 'The Long Night is the extraordinary tale of Ernst Israel Bornstein's tortuous passage through a number of Nazi camps. What he endured remind us that there were many different experiences of the camps and that there is no single Holocaust narrative.'

Daniel Finkelstein, Baron Finkelstein, is the grandson of The Wiener Library founder, Dr. Alfred Wiener. He is associate editor and columnist at The Times and a former political advisor and think-tank Chairman.

Nick Robinson is a presenter on the Today programme and a former BBC political editor.