ISBN: 0553577123/ ISBN-13: 9780553577129

The Diary of a Young Girl

(Mass-market paperback)

by Anne Frank, Miriam Pressler (Editor), Mirjam Pressler (Editor)

Bantam Books, 02/1997, 352 pages, English

One of the most valuable and informative artifacts of the holocaust, THE DIARY OF A YOUNG GIRL is the actual diary of Anne Frank, a German-Jewish girl living in Amsterdam during World War II. The diary begins on June 14, 1942, shortly after Anne's 13th birthday. While initial entries focus on Anne's life at school and her relationships with her friends and family, she does touch on the ever-growing power of the Nazi party and the increasing persecution of Jewish people. In July of 1942, fearing deportation to Auschwitz, the Franks go into hiding in a "secret annex" in the attic of Mr. Frank's former business. Soon after, they are joined by the Van Daan family and a dentist named Mr. Dussel. For over two years, Anne recorded what life was like in the annex--the fear, tension, frustration--and even boredom--of a life lived under very compromised conditions. Much of the diary centers on Anne's difficult, if typically adolescent, relationship with her mother as well as on her crush on the Van Daan's teenage son, Peter. Anne also shares her hopes for her life after the war--and her dream of becoming a writer. In this way, the diary introduces readers to a very typical teenage girl--a girl whose thoughts and emotions put a human face on the almost incomprehensible horror of the Holocaust. First published in 1947 by Anne's father (the only member of the group to survive the war), THE DIARY OF A YOUNG GIRL has since been translated into 31 languages and serves as an eloquent memorial to all those who died in the Holocaust.