Anne Frank’s Diary: Who should read this book?

Anne Frank’s diary: The diary of a young girl is one of the most prominent books of the 20th century. Anne Frank was a victim of the Holocaust during Nazi Germany. Her father Otto Frank gifted a diary to her on her 14th birthday and she started writing in it. Shortly afterward, in order to avoid prosecution for being a Jew, they went into hiding. Along with her three family members, four other people went into hiding in a building they named Secret Annexe. They remained underground for around 2 years and Anne wrote her experiences in the diary. 8 members of the Secret Annexe were arrested on August 4th, 1944 and taken to concentration camps. Her father was the only survivor. He found Anne’s diary years later and decided to publish it.

Many versions of this diary have been published until today. Initial versions omitted some passages related to Anne’s sexuality and love life. I am reviewing the definitive version. It includes the passages which were omitted in initial versions.

Why did I read this book?

I came to know about Anne Frank’s diary years ago, but never started it. It was in my to-read list for a couple of years. I write a journal every day. Some time back, I thought of changing the format of my journal in order to make it more effective and I was looking for some resources and examples online. Then I thought of reading Anne Frank’s diary. What could be a better example than this one? After all, it was an honest journal of someone’s life, that too an important one. So I started reading Anne Frank’s diary to understand her writing style and the incidents she wrote as a part of her experiences. You can also read my blog on Quick guide on starting a journal.

Critical Comments on Anne Frank’s Diary

Passing judgments to an important historical document is a little tricky. Here, I am not raising any questions on the authenticity of events. My remarks are on the book only, particularly the writing style. I feel over time multiple iterations of editing has been done on Anne Frank’s diary. As per the disclaimer, it was edited to fix the grammatical mistakes during translations. But the central content remains unaltered. However, while reading, keeping in mind the age of Anne Frank, I found the writing style overly sophisticated.

The initial 10-12% of the diary is about Anne’s life before hiding, then about going into hiding and her life changes. She talked about her daily routine which is interesting. Then, up to 50% of the diary, she predominantly talked about her relationship with other annexes’ members, news on war and other random events. I found the first half of the book difficult to read, Because this is a diary, not a novel, She randomly jumped from one topic to another quite rapidly. So it is easy to lose track while reading.

Entries in the second half of the diary talked about Anne’s love life, her sexuality, desires and perspective about life. She talks about her likeness towards Peter, another member of Secret Annexe. She also kept writing about the situation of war, her daily routine, other family members and difficulties of her life. But her thoughts seems more organised. A reader will definitely feel a significant change in her overtime while reading her diary. It shows a sense of maturity developed in her, which is inspiring. You might find the first half of the book difficult to read whereas the second half is pretty good.

Favorite Passages/Quotes from The diary of a young girl

• The best remedy for those who are frightened, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere they can be alone, alone with the sky, nature and God. For then and only then can you feel that everything is as it should be and that God wants people to be happy amid nature’s beauty and simplicity.The question is understandable, but so far no one has come up with a satisfactory answer. Why is England manufacturing bigger and better aeroplanes and bombs and at the same time churning out new houses for reconstruction? Why are millions spent on the war each day, while not a penny is available for medical science, artists or the poor? Why do people have to starve when mountains of food are rotting away in other parts of the world? Oh, why are people so crazy? I don’t believe the war is simply the work of politicians and capitalists. Oh no, the common man is every bit as guilty; otherwise, people and nations would have rebelled long ago! There’s a destructive urge in people, the urge to rage, murder and kill. And until all of humanity, without exception, undergoes a metamorphosis, wars will continue to be waged, and everything that has been carefully built up, cultivated and grown will be cut down and destroyed, only to start all over again!
• Because paper has more patience than people.
• I want to go on living even after my death!
• People can tell you to keep your mouth shut, but that doesn’t stop you from having your own opinion.
• I can’t imagine how anyone can say: “I’m weak,” and then remain so. After all, if you know it, why not fight against it, why not try to train your character? The answer was: “Because it’s so much easier not to!
• Ordinary people simply don’t know what books mean to us, shut up here. Reading, learning, and the radio are our amusements.
• If I’m engrossed in a book, I have to rearrange my thoughts before I can mingle with other people, because otherwise they might think I was strange.
• The best remedy for those who are frightened, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere they can be alone, alone with the sky, nature and God. For then and only then can you feel that everything is as it should be and that God wants people to be happy amid nature’s beauty and simplicity.
• What’s done can’t be undone, but at least you can keep it from happening again.

Check out my blogs on How I rate a book to see my book rating system and How to write a book review – A step by step guide to see how I review the books.

Who should read Anne Frank’s diary

I am going to rate this book a 4 star. I rate a book 4 star which has some impact on my point of view. Definitely, don’t expect any entertainment from this book. That means, don’t expect a dramatic story or twists from the book. Otherwise, there is a lot to learn from this 14-year-old’s diary.

Definitely recommended for

• People interested in history.
• Avid readers, it will be easy to read and finish it
• the ones, who love to read about other’s perspective
• Writers: If you love to write or you write a daily journal, there is a lot to learn from this book.
• People having a difficult time in life, this book will act as an inspiration.

Not recommended for:

• Beginner readers
• If you don’t read too much or find it hard to finish books.
• If you are not aware of the events of Holocaust

My Rating: 4 Stars

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