First published 2023
Hannah Pick-Goslar shares her childhood memories of friendship with Anne Frank in Amsterdam during World War II. After fleeing Nazi Germany in 1933, Hannah's family settles in Amsterdam where she becomes close friends with her neighbor Anne Frank. The girls spend carefree years playing games, having sleepovers, and enjoying treats in their Rivierenbuurt neighborhood. In 1942, everything changes when the Nazi occupation tightens its grip. The Frank family suddenly disappears, leaving behind unmade beds and dirty dishes but no sign of Anne's diary. Hannah faces two agonizing years wondering what happened to her dear friend, hoping Anne somehow escaped. Hannah chronicles her own family's journey through anti-Jewish laws, the gradual disappearance of classmates, and eventual imprisonment at Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. She provides an intimate view of Anne Frank that readers have never seen before, showing the girl behind the famous diary. The memoir reveals what countless children suffered under Nazi persecution and builds toward an extraordinary reunion that neither girl could have imagined.
Genres: holocaust, historical-fiction, 20th-century, biography-memoir
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family
Setting: Amsterdam, Bergen-Belsen, Rivierenbuurt
Period: World War II
320 pages · Hardcover · Little, Brown Spark
Content warnings: war