Memories of Anne Frank: Reflections of a Childhood Friend

Gold, the author of the adult work Anne Frank Remembered, a study of Miep Gies and her role in protecting the Frank family, again explores the world of Anne Frank to bring home the painful truths that Frank has come to symbolize. Here she presents the wartime experiences of Hannah Goslar, the best friend immortalized in Frank's diary as Lies. Goslar's relationship with Anne Frank, including their brief reunion in Bergen-Belsen, has previously been outlined in books for adults; the poignancy of Gold's book rests in its sensitive evocation of Goslar's youthful reactions to the war and its destruction of her family and community. Readers feel Goslar's desolation and shock upon discovering the Franks' disappearance; as the Germans' oppression increases, she daydreams about Anne, whom she is certain is safe in Switzerland, ""maybe even eating a real egg and buttered toast."" Following Goslar through her family's arrest, internment in Westerbork and subsequent deportation to Bergen-Belsen, Gold uses carefully chosen details and specific incidents to communicate the horrors of the Holocaust. While acknowledging frequent cruelty, she emphasizes the heroism and altruism of prisoners (including Goslar's, in assembling a gift of food and, at great personal risk, passing it over an illuminated barbed-wire fence to the dying Anne). Readers drawn to Anne Frank's diary will be grateful for the fuller picture rendered here. Black-and-white photos not seen by PW. Ages 8-12. (Oct.)