Anne Frank: The Biography

A great biography of Anne Frank; its style is simple and selfless, entirely in service of the subject.

I'm a slow reader, but it took me less than two days to finish.

Actually I felt as if I read three books here.

The first of these consists of the years before the Franks went into hiding. Ms. Muller tells us vividly about what was going on in Germany in the eyes of ordinary people like Anne's father, Otto. It is gripping to read about people's decisions in those days to leave or not to leave Germany. Their growing fear is palpable, and if you've only read Anne's diary, it may be especially interesting for you to read about the impact on the Franks of Hitler's occupation of Holland, which took place two years before Anne began her show more diary.

Then come the years in hiding, which is a very different part of the biography -- the second of three "books" or distinct experiences that I had. The prelude to the hiding consists of a portrait of the "external" world, in which Anne herself appears as an extroverted child, one with a personality more difficult than I had imagined, and one who was not yet aware of the larger history taking place around her; I dare say she can be the least interesting element of the first part of the biography. But once we come to the years in hiding, Anne is forced to become more introspective, and her inner life comes to the fore.

This part of the biography actually becomes something of a meditation on family life and human intimacy. My reading slowed down, but the content was actually more interesting than the large-scale historical portrait. This was really more than I had expected from a biography of one girl -- it turned into a sympathetic account of Anne's whole family and its individual members. The discussion of a formerly unpublished diary entry concerning the Franks' marriage, which delves as well into the issue of censorship, is, I think, the highlight of the book. It is obvious that Ms. Muller is both sympathetic to the protagonists and committed to the truth, which makes the subsequent turn to other well-trod subjects, like Anne's own love life, appear like an anticlimax.

Still, the story does not flag, and we arrive finally at the "third" section of the biography, the account of the betrayal and the concentration camps. To say that this material is gripping is to say nothing. Yet I was newly disturbed by the details here. From a historical point of view, what Ms. Muller has highlighted to great effect is how everything the Nazis did was intended not just to destroy, but also to humiliate. This had already been clear in Ms. Muller's chronicling of the sequence of restrictions placed upon the lives of Dutch Jews, which are rightly described as "malevolent." Here at the close of the book we see it repeatedly, as when Ms. Muller describes the disorientation that Jewish prisoners must have felt upon disembarking from trains at Auschwitz and being greeted with high floodlights and whippings. This is large-scale history from the personal vantage point, as with any biography -- but it enhances the history around it. Often what the Nazis did, because it is analyzed in an attempt to understand how it came about and how it functioned, is remembered in the abstract, so that, for instance, the restrictions on Dutch Jews can seem merely like the necessary steps to genocide rather than the malevolent expressions of hatred that they also were.

In the end the biography, though impossible to put down, becomes hard to read. The one negative thing I can say about the last part of the book is that it is so horrifying, it overwhelms a reader's reception of the gifts in the earlier sections; those have to be taken in again under a second reading. show less

"Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl" has become such a mainstay in culture and literature that is can be easy to forget that Anne Frank’s life did not begin (or end) in the famous Secret Annex and that the diary only tells a small part of her story. After reading the diary and Francine Prose’s excellent "Anne Frank: The Book, the Life, the Afterlife" and teaching the two theatrical versions of the diary, I thought I had a well-rounded knowledge base on Anne Frank’s life. However, Melissa Muller’s "Anne Frank: The Biography" filled in some notable gaps, specifically in terms of Edith and Otto Frank’s early lives.

Muller’s biography is impressive on a number of fronts. Although the ending is a foregone conclusion for most show more people, she builds a sense of suspense. Reading the book, I felt myself hoping for a different outcome even though I knew the inevitable conclusion. This biography skillfully melds meticulous research with an engaging and approaching writing style, and the outcome is a compulsively readable and informative work. I especially appreciated the epilogue, which provides details on the fates of many of the people mentioned in the book. The only problem this caused was that, each time I encountered a person in the book, I felt the urge to flip to the back to see what happened to him or her (this, I realize, is an issue on my part and not on the part of the author).

While this book can’t (and wasn’t meant to) act as a substitute for the diary, it makes an excellent companion piece and supplement. I could see it being a great resource for educators who teach the diary, students who want to learn more about Anne Frank, or anyone who has read the diary and wondered about the rest of Anne’s story. show less

Anne Frank has become one of the most important icons of the holocaust. Her diary and its dramatizations have been most effective at creating the image of an innocent who was murdered by the Nazis for nothing more than being Jewish. Unfortunately, some of her humanity, human relations and family history have been lost in those portrayals. This excellent biography restores that focus, introducing the reader to a new, more human version of Anne and her family. Moreover, it introduces many others to the story -- helpers, possible informers, Nazi officials, etc. The cast of characters is a little overwhelming, but the epilogue his quite helpful in that regard because it follows their fates. The chapter on the fates of Anne and her family is show more especially hard to read, especially when one considers the magnitude of the crime. show less

I usually avoid reading biographies because of the impassive tone of the writing and the endless facts that become tiresome. This biography of a young girl who lived and died in tragic times is an exception. I enjoyed learning about her extended family and the ties that bound them together even when they were forced apart. The Dutch people were amazing in the way they protected their Jewish neighbors to the best of their abilities. There are many unsung heroes who risked their lives to fight the spreading evil of Hitler and his henchmen.

While The Diary of Anne Frank tells about two years in the life of this ordinary girl who loved life and had the remarkable gift of expressing what it felt like to be in hiding, Muller adds much detail show more to Anne's story through her thorough research. if you've ever wondered what kind of life Anne had before and after her written account, then this is a book that will answer your questions.

There are many family stories, reproductions of photographs, and an extensive Epilogue that tells what happened to most of the key people in the book. Miep Gies was the trusted employee of Otto Frank who made it possible for two families and one dentist to be fed and clothed for two years as they lived in the cramped annex behind the office and warehouse of Mr. Frank's business. I heartily agree with what she wrote in her letter of 1998 that is included in this updated and expanded biography:

"It is often said that Anne symbolizes the six million victims of the Holocaust. I consider this statement wrong. Anne's life and death were her own individual fate, an individual fate that happened six million times over. Anne cannot, and should not, stand for the many individuals whom the Nazis robbed of their lives. Each victim had his or her own ideals and outlook on life; each victim occupied a unique, personal place in the world and in the hearts of his or her relatives and friends." show less

A very readable biography that sheds a lot of light on Frank family history and chillingly recounts the ratcheting up of persecution against Jews, firstly in Germany after Hitler came to power, then in Holland after the Nazis invaded in 1940. The period in the Annex, being the most familiar period, was perhaps the least revealing, but nevertheless pointed up the psychological effects on a young girl of going through adolescent awakening in a confined space (this emerges very clearly in the definitive edition of the Diary). The post-Annex time is, of course, very difficult reading and the tragedy of Anne's separation from the loving bosom of the family in the last few months well described. An appendix details the fates of the key show more players. A must read. show less

could not put this book down. I read all night. I cried for much of the next day. This is one of those books which examines the most profound aspects of the human condition. Anne Frank was a real person, whom many people have come to know a little about through her famous diary. What this book did was enable us to see her as part of a family - a genetic family and a family of humanity. This is the sort of book which it is important to guide younger people to. As we leave behind the century which saw the enormous destruction of world wars, but where genocide is all too constant still, this is the sort of book which is necessary so that we don't forget. I cannot speak highly enough of this book.

For several years, I taught The Diary of Anne Frank as an 8th grade English teacher. I have read several books on Anne, including a couple of different biographies. I was eager to read this one, and I was not disappointed. I would consider the most comprehensive biography of an incredible young woman. I learned many things about Anne that were only alluded to in other things I have read. I have a clearer picture of the true person that she was than I have had before. Muller does not canonize Anne but presents her as the talented multi-faceted teenager that she was. Sometimes she is a spoiled little girl, and at other times, she is a young woman who has insights that few teenagers would have. Additional information is included in this show more book also, information about her father's business (which frankly left me confused, to be honest!), relevant historical information, and insights into her extended family. The reader especially gets to know her father much more, which would be expected since he alone of the family survived. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning more about this extraordinary young lady whose writings have touched so many and who has left a lasting legacy beyond value.

**I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.** show less