26/06/2023
Today marks the 76th anniversary of the publication of Anne Frank's famous diary, known widely as "The Diary of a Young Girl." During her years in hiding with her family in the Secret Annex during WWII, Anne kept a detailed diary of her life, reflecting on both her emotional and physical development, and recording her observations about the people within the Annex as well as the political climate outside. After the Frank family's arrest in August 1944, Anne's diary was keep safe by Miep Gies, a former employee of her father, Otto Frank, and a trusted family friend who helped support them during their years in hiding in Amsterdam. Gies returned it to Otto Frank, the family's only survivor, following the war.
After the diary was published on June 25, 1947, Otto Frank said, "If she had been here, Anne would have been so proud." Today, the diary of Anne Frank has been translated into more than 60 languages, transformed into plays and films, and educated people worldwide about the realities of a genocide through the eyes of a young girl. Tragically, Anne, who would have turned 93 this year, died in a concentration camp just before the war's end and never had a chance to discover how profoundly affecting her words would be to millions of people around the world. Among those was Eleanor Roosevelt, who called Anne's diary "one of the wisest and most moving commentaries on war and its impact on human beings that I have ever read."
To share Anne Frank's powerful diary with a new generation, we highly recommend it for ages 11 and up at https://www.amightygirl.com/the-diary-of-a-young-girl
To introduce children to Anne Frank, we also recommend the picture books "I Am Anne Frank" for ages 4 to 8 (https://www.amightygirl.com/i-am-anne-frank) and "Anne Frank" for ages 5 to 8 (https://www.amightygirl.com/anne-frank-little-people), the illustrated biography "Who Was Anne Frank?" for ages 7 to 11 (https://www.amightygirl.com/who-was-anne-frank), and "Anne Frank Graphic Biography" for ages 11 and up (https://www.amightygirl.com/anne-frank-graphic-novel)
There is also an inspiring picture book about Miep Gies, the woman who hid Anne and her family, "Miep and the Most Famous Diary" for ages 6 to 9 at https://www.amightygirl.com/miep-and-the-most-famous-diary
For adult readers who would like to learn more about her life and legacy, we recommend "Anne Frank Remembered: The Story of the Woman Who Helped to Hide the Frank Family" (https://www.amightygirl.com/anne-frank-remembered) and the newly released "My Friend Anne Frank" (https://www.amightygirl.com/my-friend-anne-frank)
For many books for children and teens about girls and women who lived during the Holocaust period, visit our blog post, "60 Mighty Girl Books About The Holocaust" at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=11586
