Thursday, December 6, 2012

Book Review #240 - The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

The Diary of a Young Girl
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.
 
 
 
My Rating: 4/5
 
 
 
I have owned this book since June and was only recently inspired to pick it up after watching the film Freedom Writers.
 
 
There were times when this book felt more like fiction than non-fiction and this was probably due to the quality of Anne's writing.
 
 
Before reading this book, I thought this would be a very dull and depressing read whereas I found it really funny at times. Anne was a really good writer for her age.
 
 
I think what makes this book as much of a classic is that it reads as if it could have been written by a teenage girl of any era whilst it also sheds light on the brutal reality of the situation she had to live through.
 
 
This book was slow paced at times, but I was never bored. This is the first historical biography I have read and didn't really expect to love it as much as I did.

No comments:

Post a Comment