Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl
| Modern Age |
|---|
 Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl
|
World History > Modern Age > WWII / Holocaust
Discovered in the attic in which she spent the last years of her life, Anne Frank’s remarkable diary has become a world classic— a powerful reminder of the horrors of war and an eloquent testament to the human spirit.
In 1942, with the Nazis occupying Holland, a thirteen-year-old Jewish girl and her family fled their home in Amsterdam and went into hiding. For the next two years, until their whereabouts were betrayed to the Gestapo, the Franks and another family lived cloistered in the “Secret Annexe” of an old office building. Cut off from the outside world, they faced hunger, boredom, the constant cruelties of living in confined quarters, and the ever-present threat of discovery and death. In her diary Anne Frank recorded vivid impressions of her experiences during this period. By turns thoughtful, moving, and surprisingly humorous, her account offers a fascinating commentary on human courage and frailty and a compelling self-portrait of a sensitive and spirited young woman whose promise was tragically cut short.
Emily's Review
I read this book so many times in my teen years that I felt like I actually knew Anne. Her words seared themselves into my mind, and made me feel less alone when I was the only Jewish kid in school. I even performed selections from Anne Frank's Diary in Forensics (a public speaking competition) that took me all the way to state finals. I think it's easy to think of her as this sainted girl, a picture of innocence and perfection because she didn't get a chance to grow up and make any mistakes. But Anne was just a girl, like every other girl, she was moody sometimes, she was a little bit boy crazy, but also questioning her own sexuality. Through her wit, humor, and wry observation, she managed to capture what living in hiding for several years was like. She was a great many things, and I get angry every time I think about how we were robbed of her talent and creativity. Her diary should be required reading.
Other Similar Books
Other suggestions on the subject of the Holocaust.
- Hidden Hope (by: Boxer, Elisa, France, LE, MG)
- Stars of the Night: The Courageous Children of the Czech Kindertransport (by: Stelson, Caren, Czechoslovakia, LE, MG)
- Stone Angel (by: Yolen, Jane, France, LE)
- Once (by: Gleitzman, Morris, Poland, MG, UMG)
- Then (by: Gleitzman, Morris, Poland, MG, UMG)
- The Girl Who Sang (by: Nadel, Estelle, Savos, Sammy, Strout, Bethany, Poland, MG, UMG)
- Out of Hiding (by: Gruener, Ruth, Poland, United States, MG)
- Now (by: Gleitzman, Morris, Australia, MG, UMG)
- Hidden: A Child's Story of the Holocaust (by: Dauvillier, Loïc, France, MG, UMG)
- I Will Protect You: A True Story of Twins Who Survived Auschwitz (by: Kor, Eva Mozes, Romania, MG)
- Esfir is Alive (by: Simon, Andrea, Poland, UMG, YA)
- When We Flew Away (by: Hoffman, Alice, Netherlands, UMG, YA)
- Four Perfect Pebbles (by: Blumenthal Lazan, Marion, Germany, Holland, UMG)
- Courage to Dream: Tales of Hope in the Holocaust (by: Shusterman, Neal, various, UMG, YA)
- We'll Soon Be Home Again (by: Bab Bonde, Jessica, Various, UMG, YA)
- Beyond Courage (by: Rappaport, Doreen, Germany, UMG, YA)
- No Pretty Pictures: A Child of War (by: Lobel, Anita, Poland, UMG, YA)
- The Devil's Arithmetic (by: Yolen, Jane, Poland, UMG, YA)
- Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl (by: Frank, Anne, Netherlands, UMG, YA)
- Upon the Head of the Goat (by: Siegal, Aranka, Hungary, UMG)
- When the World Was Ours (by: Kessler, Liz, Austria, UMG, YA)
- Briar Rose (by: Yolen, Jane, Poland, YA, A)
- They Went Left (by: Hesse, Monica, Poland, Germany, YA, A)
- Names in a Jar (by: Gold, Jennifer, Poland, YA, A)
- 28 Days: A Novel of Resistance in the Warsaw Ghetto (by: Safier, David, Poland, YA, A)
- Margot (by: Cantor, Jillian, United States, YA, A)
- The Redhead of Auschwitz: A True Story (by: Birnbaum, Nechama, Romania, Germany, YA, A)
- The Search (by: Heuvel, Eric, Netherlands, YA, A)
- My Name is Selma (by: van de Perre, Selma, Netherlands, YA, A)
- Mapping the Bones (by: Yolen, Jane, Poland, YA, A)
- Night (by: Wiesel, Elie, Romania, YA, A)
- Dawn (by: Wiesel, Elie, Palestine, YA, A)
- The Librarian of Auschwitz (by: Iturbe, Antonio, Poland, YA, A)
- Impossible Escape: A True Story of Survival and Heroism in Nazi Europe (by: Sheinkin, Steve, Poland, YA, A)
- The Blood Years (by: Arnold, Elana K., Romania, YA, A)
- Day (by: Wiesel, Elie, United States, YA, A)
- The Lost: A Search for Six of Six Million (by: Mendelsohn, Daniel, Ukraine, A)