Who Was Anne Frank? - Nonfiction

Who Was Anne Frank? was written by Ann Abramson and illustrated by Nancy Harrison. They book goes into detail about Anne's life before she began keeping her famous diary and what it was like up until she was sent to a concentration camp. Chapter 1 is about Anne's family and her life as a child. It talks about her father, Otto, mother, and her sister, Margot. It talks about what Anne and her family did together and the fact that they were Jewish. When Hitler came to Germany, the Franks moved to Switzerland and then to Amsterdam in the Netherlands. Chapter 2 is about Anne's life in Amsterdam. It talks about her new friends and the type of things she likes to do in her free time. Chapter 3 is about World War II which was nearing in on Anne and her family. They did less fun things and spent more time worrying and finding supplies. Chapter 4 is when the Germans came to occupy the Netherlands and the restrictions placed on Jewish people. Chapter 5 talks about the Yellow Star that all Jews had to wear on their clothing. Anne became very sad because she had to be inside at night, she could not ride her bike, and other things were taken away from her. In Chapter 6, Anne receives her diary, Kitty, for her thirteenth birthday. The Franks receive news that Margot was to be sent to a concentration camp so the family decided to go into hiding. They had to wear all their clothes because they could not be seen trying to leave with suitcases in fear of punishment. Mr. and Mrs. Frank had been preparing the hideout for many months. Chapter 7 takes place in the secret annex. It was a small hideout attached to Otto's offices. They had to be very quiet and they could never leave in fear of being caught. Fritz Pfeffer and the Van Pels' family eventually moved in with the Franks. They had the help of a few people who could bring them food and supplies since they could not leave. Anne and Peter Van Pels became good friends and they did school work together to keep each other company. Everyone in the annex was very restless and starting to annoy one another. In Chapter 8 the people in the annex are caught by the Germans after hiding for more than two years. After they were taken, Miep, a friend who had been helping the family, took Anne's diary and other family belongings to keep for when the family got out of the camps. Chapter 9 is about Otto Frank, the only person in the annex that survived the concentration camps. Miep gave him Anne's diary and he had it published because it was her dream to become a famous journalist. 

I would use this book to introduce Anne Frank and the holocaust. I think that it would be a good introductory book for this topic. It gives a broad overview of what happened during the holocaust so the students can become familiar with the subject before studying it more in depth. Many students have read The Diary of Anne Frank but this goes more in depth about who she was and things she enjoyed doing. This will allow the students to connect more to her and she that she is very similar to them. I think it will make them to engaged in learning about her and the holocaust. It will help them make connections to their life and what it would be like if this happened to them.