When I read The Diary of a Young Girl, my heart bled for Anne Frank. Living inside the annex for two years without sunlight, without a sliver pf sky, without being about to talk properly, eat properly. What a horrible life. And when the diary remained unfinished, I spent days thinking how she would have suffered. Rosemary Sullivan, through her book Betrayal of Anne Frank, intends to give closure to Anne Frank’s tale.
The Betrayal of Anne Frank by Rosemary Sullivan
Blurb
‘Hums with living history, human warmth and indignation’ New York Times
Less a mystery unsolved than a secret well kept
The mystery has haunted generations since the Second World War: Who betrayed Anne Frank and her family? And why?
Now, thanks to radical new technology and the obsession of a retired FBI agent, this book offers an answer. Rosemary Sullivan unfolds the story in a gripping, moving narrative.
Over thirty million people have read The Diary of a Young Girl, the journal teenaged Anne Frank kept while living in an attic with her family and four other people in Amsterdam during World War II, until the Nazis arrested them and sent them to a concentration camp. But despite the many works – journalism, books, plays and novels – devoted to Anne’s story, none has ever conclusively explained how these eight people managed to live in hiding undetected for over two years – and who or what finally brought the Nazis to their door.
With painstaking care, retired FBI agent Vincent Pankoke and a team of indefatigable investigators pored over tens of thousands of pages of documents – some never before seen – and interviewed scores of descendants of people familiar with the Franks. Utilising methods developed by the FBI, the Cold Case Team painstakingly pieced together the months leading to the infamous arrest – and came to a shocking conclusion.
The Betrayal of Anne Frank: A Cold Case Investigation is the riveting story of their mission. Rosemary Sullivan introduces us to the investigators, explains the behaviour of both the captives and their captors and profiles a group of suspects. All the while, she vividly brings to life wartime Amsterdam: a place where no matter how wealthy, educated, or careful you were, you never knew whom you could trust.
My review
Nearly a century after the arrest of the Franks, retired FBI agent Vincent Pankoke and his team set out to investigate who betrayed the Franks and reported them, which ended up destroying the family. The investigation starts with Otto Frank, Anne Frank’s father, the only surviving member of the family. The horrors that they had to endure are unimaginable. The author has an excellent craft wherein she has portrayed everything without losing its intensity, at the same time trying not to merely sensationalize it. What happened to Anne Frank, how Otto Frank learn about it, what happens to him further. The book is all the more heart-wrenching b for the readers.
Through the book, the author takes the readers through each and every step taken by the cold case investigation team. Each piece of evidence they get, how they followed it and struck out the irrelevant ones. The book is huge but informative and engaging for everyone who is interested in the cause.
Towards the second half of the book, it started getting saturated, and the pace drops. Further, it picks up towards the climax. However, the author finds a closure in the climax which also leaves the book open-ended. If you are looking forward to the journey. the book will blow your mind. If you want to get a proper closure, you will be disappointed. The book is undoubtedly a treasure for your library.
This is a well penned review like the book itself. I read Anne Frank's Book based on her diary. I liked that. I am looking forward to read it also. I hope it will like it
Oh wow I never knew that this book existed
I have read Anne frank and quite frankly was really angry that they didn’t survive I how this book gives me some closure
Same as you, I've read also like millions of others the first book about Anne Frank. It is the first time I heard of this book you've reviewed though and would love to read it as well. Having that closure to many unanswered questions would be great. Appreciate you. sharing this. – MommyWithAGoal
Even i read diary of anne frank as a young girl…i felt so bad for their plight. I believe if we read this book we will all get closure.
The Diary of a Young Girl has long been on my list. I don't know why I haven't read it till now. And now, this book, Betrayal of Anne Frank, has been added. I will try and get both together and read one after the other, just to keep the flow of narrative.
I have always wanted to read this book but somehow could never manage to do it. I think it would be amazing to finally have the chance to read it. It has been on my "to-read" list for too long and I'm determined to finish it this year! Wish me luck! 🙂
I have always wanted to read this book but somehow could never manage to do it. I think it would be amazing to finally have the chance to read it. It has been on my "to-read" list for too long and I'm determined to finish it this year! Wish me luck! 🙂
[…] of coming face to face on another day. But the pandemic came like that Nazi soldiers we saw in Betrayal of Anne Frank. They aim at ending your voyage towards the dream and end up bringing the folks together with one […]