The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

Title: The Diary of a Young Girl

Author: Anne Frank

Date Published: 1952 (Original date when published in English)

Publisher: Random House Publishing Group

Genre: Classic, non-fiction, autobiography, memoir

Pages: 283 (hardback)








Summary

Discovered in the attic in which she spent the last years of her life, Anne Frank's remarkable diary has since become a world classic—a powerful reminder of the horrors of war and an eloquent testament to the human spirit. In 1942, with 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, they and another family lived cloistered in the "Secret Annex" 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 amusing, 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.

The journal of a Jewish girl in her early teens describes both the joys and torments of daily life, as well as typical adolescent thoughts, throughout two years spent in hiding with her family during the Nazi occupation of Holland.

Review


The Diary of a Young Girl isn't just about World War II. It's about Anne Frank's feelings and experiences and personal thoughts and opinions; these are the reasons why she kept diaries. Anne needed someone to talk to; to pour her heart out to during this difficult time in her life. So, she started writing to a fictional being, which she named Kitty.

There's not much I can say about this book, because I can't put my thoughts and emotions into words. I can't begin to describe to you how I felt about this book. While reading it, I felt many different things. Mostly sadness, because I knew this book's ending, since it is one of the most talked about non-fiction books in the world.

Very powerful story of survival and hope and love and strength. Anne was a beautiful and brilliant girl that got what she wanted--to be remembered. Her diary has been shared round-the-world. This would come to any other girl's horror. To have your diary out there for anyone and everyone to read, that's every girl's nightmare.

But I don't believe Anne would see this as a catastrophe. I believe she is happy with the outcome of her story. Yes, it started out as a private thing, and maybe she would be a little upset, but in the long run I believe she would be happy about how much good it has done. There was so much strength and maturity in this young girl.

I don't have much else to say...I don't really want to give a review because I feel that it wouldn't do it justice to "rate" or "review" it. I will say what I have to say but no more.

Very sad, very moving, very powerful. I cannot say that this book was enjoyable for reasons, but, for others, I can say that it is. You'll have to read this classic to understand how it is and isn't. In some parts while reading this book, you'll forget it's tragic ending and allow yourself to smile at some witty line that Anne wrote. But the smile quickly disappears.

I knew what happened to the Franks, Van Daans and Mr. Dussel, but not in great detail. And reading it was very different than hearing it. The last pages in the "Afterwards" section were painful to read. I could see Anne, could imagine how she looked, at the brink of her death. I could only imagine the physical and emotional pain she was going through; only imagine how hungry and lost she must have felt. Reading about her death, and the death of the others was different from hearing it, but we'll never know the true pain these people went through because we weren't there.


Sorry I haven't posted a review in so long, but I've been reading books, short stories and poetry for school. I'm back though and will have a review up soon!