Preserving memory

the long version

From the moment it opened on April 22, 1993, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum has captivated the American public with its innovative and affecting representation of one of the century's most troubling events. In its first year, it attracted nearly two million visitors -- at the rate of five thousand a day -- each of whom walked away with a lasting impression of awe in the face of the unimaginable. This honest, lively, and readable story of its creation portrays the emotionally complex and intellectually complicated struggles surrounding the birth of the museum. Striking in its tone and subtle observation, Preserving Memory tells the remarkable story of the fifteen-year struggle surrounding the project. Beset by endless obstacles, but imbued with the determination to create a worthy memorial to the pain and devastation of the "Final Solution," the museum's creators succeeded in making a monument to the extremes of human goodness and evil. - Jacket flap.