Anne Holm was born Else Annelise Jørgensen. In 1949, she married Johan Holm, a numismatist; the couple had one son and later divorced. She was called Denmark’s boldest original talent for arousing controversy with her (to some) shocking narrative of a 12-year-old boy’s journey from a concentration camp to Denmark, the novel I am David (1963). It won the ALA Notable Book award in 1965 and the 1963 Best Scandinavian Children's Book award. Many of her books for children and teenagers also appealed to adult readers. Her obituary in the Independent said, "An elegant, sharp-witted and charming companion, and for many years a close friend of Karen Blixen, she was not an obvious candidate for the writing of such a passionate story as I Am David. Yet she lived to see books written about her masterpiece. When translations from abroad were becoming increasingly rare in children's fiction, Anne Holm's achievement in spreading her humane message to such a huge, international young audience remains a proud one."
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