Reviews

The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

chloeutan's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

pajamareading's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful inspiring slow-paced

4.5

To be completely honest, this book is not one that we can judge by the reviews because it's actually not a book in the traditional sense, but a published diary. It is the diary of a thirteen-year-old girl sharing her perspective on how war impacted her youth and shattered her future dreams. It's a teenage girl sharing her little world in the midst of the loss of humanity. Knowing there's a kid who was still trying to find joy and peace in those cruel times by writing her thoughts in her diary day by day still amazes me.  If I were her, maybe my fear would overpower my courage to write about my feelings on daily life during those hopeless days. Perhaps I would choose to count the days until I died rather than counting the days until I was free. But Anne didn't let the cruel world take away her innocence as a child. She kept her hopes for a day when she wouldn't need to hide her beliefs, her identity, and her entire existence. She tried surviving the cruel world by escaping to the one she designed in her diary. 

Anne is so articulate for a thirteen-year-old girl, and it really shows in her writing. It makes you wonder, "Am I really reading a teenage girl's diary?" because it doesn't always seem like it. Of course, there are some writings that clearly show she was a thirteen-year-old kid—her insecurities, conflicts with family, and her love story. But she was also far deeper than most people her age. She's really a walking contradiction, as she wrote about herself. Sometimes she acts like a tough kid, but on other days, she's like a wise grandma who has been through a lot in life. So, the emotions of reading this book are mixed. Sometimes I'm excited, sometimes I get bored, sometimes I feel so relatable, and sometimes I suddenly feel so sad. It always depends on what she wrote in her diary on the dates I'm reading. 

In the version of the book that I read, the last diary entry Anne wrote was on August 2, 1944. I couldn't hold back my tears when I reached that page. It's like saying goodbye forever to a stranger that you are comfortable enough with to be yourself. I don't know why I take it so personally, but I do really relate to Anne in terms of the way she thinks. Sometimes, I joke and say maybe it's just a Gemini thing because we were born in the same month. I know it's not a scientific way of saying it, but I'm glad that I finally read this book. So, give this book a chance! 

taschamay's review against another edition

Go to review page

medium-paced

5.0

booklover389's review against another edition

Go to review page

slow-paced

munchingmango's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

Its a diary
Its a goooooood diary
She dies

cjohnson0513's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional informative sad tense

5.0

kate_in_a_book's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny reflective medium-paced

5.0

laureenreads's review

Go to review page

4.0

This book was really interesting, and it was such a fantastic read. Seeing the world through her eyes was... I don't want to sound like a cliche, but it changes the way you see things. I love how through the heart of it all, Anne Frank shone bright.

whimsicalmeerkat's review

Go to review page

3.0

I cry every time. And am currently upset that they cut down the tree outside the house!!!

theinkybaroness's review

Go to review page

challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

4.0