Books have been always my best companions. When I am sad,
when I am happy, when I am tired … and when I am sleepless. Most importantly,
books are my refuge when reality becomes too painful to bear. In the coming days,
I will introduce you to my escorts that helped me last couple of months to go
through some difficult times of heartbreak, failure, loss, and disheartening.
The
diary of a young girl by Anne Frank
I assume most of you have already read or heard about this book.
The story of the little Jewish girl who wrote her diary while in hiding during World War II. The book was on my to-read list for more than 3 years until last
February. In addition to messy days I was going through, I had a serious
sleeping issue and I wanted to stop taking the sleeping pills that seemed to
drag me to depression. To avoid overthinking about my own troubles, I thought
reading a memoir would keep my mind busy with someone else’s struggle. So, I
went through my "Memoirs and Biographies" shelf on Goodreads. I saw this book
title, and I immediately chose it. What can ban negative thoughts better than a real story
from WW II can do? However, every time I picked up my e-reader to read my eyes hurt badly (I only had free time at night), and I couldn’t read more than few
pages. That was expected after spending more than 7 hours working on a
computer. As the story captivated me, I wanted to go faster with reading it.
Thus, I switched to the audio version of the book. It was narrated by Susan Adams,
who had a nice calm voice that brought Anne to life in my imagination.
 |
| The diary of a young girl |
The book is originally Anne’s diary, published after the war
by her father, the only survivor in her family. She described small details
that we usually don’t think about when we talk about the war. She expressed her
frustration when she had to share the same room with other people who treated
her like a kid, or when they all had to use the bathroom only in the evenings
so nobody in the building would hear them. They had food shortage, and they struggled
with some diseases and depression because of staying indoors for so long. She conveyed
her sad and happy moments in an innocent simple way that broke my heart. She
was a smart girl who loved reading about history and learning languages. She
never understood why she had to be punished for being Jewish. Despite
everything, she was hopeful that soon the war will end, and that she will be
able to have her own life, and realize her dreams.
This never came true. She was captured (along with everyone who was
with her) and sent to concentration camps where she died too young. Although
she didn’t live to realize her dreams, her words still survive to give us a
lesson … A lesson about never giving up no matter what, and to always enjoy even
the simplest of available pleasure before it is too late.
My admiration for this book went far enough to watch the movie
adaptation, and an anime version with my little sisters and brother
that left a remarkable touch on them. I recommend the book (or the movies
adaptations) for everyone … It is worth it.
Merry
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