How much of Anne’s diary resonates with you will probably depend on how old you were when you first read it. I was 13, the same age Anne is when she begins to write in her diary. It was the first time I had heard anything substantial about the Holocaust, and it cut deep. I’ve not re-read it since and maybe it wouldn’t have the same power if I did, but it’s in my top five because it demonstrates the possibility of books – they can reveal a whole new world to a reader. And despite the horrors of what happened to Anne and her family and millions of others, this book ultimately reminds us of our common humanity.
