Diary of a Young Girl – By Anna Frank
Copyright 1952 by Otto H. Frank
Audience: Middle school students
Summary:
This book is a real diary of a girl going through one of the most horrific wars of our time. The original diary was found in the secret annex where Anna Frank, her family and another family lived in hiding for two years. Although the families are in hiding from Nazi Germany, the story lines in this book follow the life of a girl going through teenage difficulties. Anna writes throughout the two years of her life to her diary, “Kitty.”
Themes:
Coming of Age – Not only is Anna going through a war during this time of her life, she is going through some typical teenage experiences. Anna fights with her family, feels like other people don’t understand her and even talks about boys, relationships, and sex. Her views change and grow as she is changing and growing.
“Why didn’t Father support me in my struggle? Why did he fall short when he tried to offer me a helping hand? The answer is this: he used the wrong methods. He always talked to me as if I were a child going through a difficult phase. It sounds crazy, since Father’s the only one who’s given me a sense of confidence and made me feel as if I’m a sensible person. But he overlooked one thing: he failed to see that this struggle to triumph over my difficulties was more important to me than anything else. I didn’t want to hear about "typical adolescent problems," or "other girls," or "you’ll grow out of it." I didn’t want to be treated the same as all-the-other-girls, but as Anne-in-her-own-right, and Pim didn’t understand that.” – Page 261
War: This diary was written right in the middle of World War II. Anna Frank’s family was in hiding but eventually captured and sent to concentration camps. While in hiding, the family listened to what was going on with the war through the radio. Anna wrote about it almost daily. Anna Frank’s life was constantly in danger.
“I could go on for hours about all the suffering the war has brought, but then I would only make myself more dejected. There is nothing we can do but wait as calmly as we can till the misery comes to an end. Jews and Christians wait, the whole earth waits; and there are many who wait for death.” – Page 64
My Reaction
I had a hard time reading this and keeping interest. Since it is a diary, there is no set plot to follow. But there is something interesting and intriguing about reading someone else’s diary. Girls write everything they are thinking, feeling, and going through. It was cool to be able to relate to some of the topics Anna was going through. I fought with my older sister a lot. I questioned myself. I also enjoyed, and also was annoyed, by boys. On top of that, I realized I was able to relate to a girl who lived in a different time frame, who lived in a different country, and who went through a different war. I think this would be a great book to read with middle school students, to show that all the awkward situations and feelings they are going, every other girl is going through as well. Also it is a great way to show what life is like during a war. Our country is at war but it is completely different than the experiences Anna was going through.
Copyright 1952 by Otto H. Frank
Audience: Middle school students
Summary:
This book is a real diary of a girl going through one of the most horrific wars of our time. The original diary was found in the secret annex where Anna Frank, her family and another family lived in hiding for two years. Although the families are in hiding from Nazi Germany, the story lines in this book follow the life of a girl going through teenage difficulties. Anna writes throughout the two years of her life to her diary, “Kitty.”
Themes:
Coming of Age – Not only is Anna going through a war during this time of her life, she is going through some typical teenage experiences. Anna fights with her family, feels like other people don’t understand her and even talks about boys, relationships, and sex. Her views change and grow as she is changing and growing.
“Why didn’t Father support me in my struggle? Why did he fall short when he tried to offer me a helping hand? The answer is this: he used the wrong methods. He always talked to me as if I were a child going through a difficult phase. It sounds crazy, since Father’s the only one who’s given me a sense of confidence and made me feel as if I’m a sensible person. But he overlooked one thing: he failed to see that this struggle to triumph over my difficulties was more important to me than anything else. I didn’t want to hear about "typical adolescent problems," or "other girls," or "you’ll grow out of it." I didn’t want to be treated the same as all-the-other-girls, but as Anne-in-her-own-right, and Pim didn’t understand that.” – Page 261
War: This diary was written right in the middle of World War II. Anna Frank’s family was in hiding but eventually captured and sent to concentration camps. While in hiding, the family listened to what was going on with the war through the radio. Anna wrote about it almost daily. Anna Frank’s life was constantly in danger.
“I could go on for hours about all the suffering the war has brought, but then I would only make myself more dejected. There is nothing we can do but wait as calmly as we can till the misery comes to an end. Jews and Christians wait, the whole earth waits; and there are many who wait for death.” – Page 64
My Reaction
I had a hard time reading this and keeping interest. Since it is a diary, there is no set plot to follow. But there is something interesting and intriguing about reading someone else’s diary. Girls write everything they are thinking, feeling, and going through. It was cool to be able to relate to some of the topics Anna was going through. I fought with my older sister a lot. I questioned myself. I also enjoyed, and also was annoyed, by boys. On top of that, I realized I was able to relate to a girl who lived in a different time frame, who lived in a different country, and who went through a different war. I think this would be a great book to read with middle school students, to show that all the awkward situations and feelings they are going, every other girl is going through as well. Also it is a great way to show what life is like during a war. Our country is at war but it is completely different than the experiences Anna was going through.