“Gillham is a powerful storyteller, and Annelies is marbled with spare eloquence that captures the absurdity of life after the camps. . . . A novel that reminds the world to remember Anne Frank is most welcome.” —USA Today “A haunting what-if.” —Georgia Hunter, New York Times bestselling author of We Were the Lucky Ones “Not only a poignant reminder of all that was lost during the war, but a … poignant reminder of all that was lost during the war, but a vivid, searching exploration of what it meant to exist in the aftermath.” —Jessica Shattuck, New York Times bestselling author of The Women in the Castle
From the author of City of Women, a powerful new novel that asks the question: What if Anne Frank survived the Holocaust?
Anne Frank is a cultural icon whose diary painted a vivid picture of the Holocaust and made her an image of humanity in one of history’s darkest moments. But she was also a person—a precocious young girl with a rich inner life and tremendous skill as a writer. In this masterful new novel, David R. Gillham explores with breathtaking empathy the woman—and the writer—she might have become.
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In Annelies, David Gillham not only explores what might have happened if Anne Frank had survived, but also draws an intimate portrait of life as a Jewish survivor in post-war Amsterdam. By turns a coming-of-age novel and a story of survival, redemption, and family—Annelies is a meticulously researched, emotionally resonant what-if.
Annelies is the story of the life Anne Frank may have lived if she had survived the Holocaust. David R. Gillham’s research and detailed writing made me feel as if I were there along with Anne. A must read for historical fiction fans and lovers of The Diary of A Young Girl.
Every once in awhile, a book comes along that just takes your breath away…a book that you wish you could give more than five stars…a book that speaks to your deepest feelings. For me. Annelies is one of those rare books. It is so beautifully written that I lived the book with the characters, I felt Anne’s pain as well as her anger and confusion after the war. I think its because I read The Diary of Anne Frank at a very impressionable age when it was difficult to read that she had died in the camps. Annelies is based on the premise that Anne survived and is reconciled with her father in Amsterdam after the war. All of the pain from the camps leads to great anger and survivor’s guilt when she tries to regain her old life.
I must admit that I cried a lot of tears while reading this book. Anne’s time in the camps was so physically demeaning and her anger and confusion after the war were so mentally harsh. This was a beautiful, well written and well re-searched novel. Suspend your knowledge that you know Anne didn’t survive and read this author’s story about what her life could have been like — you’ll be glad that you did.
Thanks to First to Read for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own
Annelies by David Gillham is a powerful and heart breaking historical ‘what-if’ novel – what if Anne Frank had survived and returned to her father Otto Frank?
I have read widely around Anne Frank and visited her house in Amsterdam in 1983. The novel has accurately been constructed around her diary pre August 1944 and eye witness events up to her death in March/April 1945. Post April 1945 is a product of the author’s imagination. It is a compelling read, although the Anne Frank we ‘know’ from her diary is very different to the fictional Anne Frank who returns from Belsen. “This is Bergen Belsen, and here the angel of death has made his home.” She has been to hell and back. She survived but carried a burden of guilt. “I’m guilty of the crime of surviving.”
During the war years Anne Frank had had a difficult relationship with her mother but adored her father. “As long as God and Pim are on the job, she [I] was protected.” I cannot believe that the Anne Frank portrayed after the war would feel so differently towards him.
Annelies is a compelling read. It is a heart breaking read because we know that the real Anne Frank perished at Belsen. She never had the chance to grow up. She is forever a fresh faced smiling teenager. If she had known her father had survived, would she have fought to live? Believing her whole family to have perished, Anne Frank surrendered her soul to death.
The treatment of Anne Frank and the six million innocents was a terrible crime against humanity. We owe it to them all to keep their memory alive. Thank you David Gillham for writing Annelies and helping to preserve the memory of the innocents.
In this haunting what-if, David Gillham asks us to reflect on the quandary of how one learns—in the unimaginable wake of the Holocaust—to live again, shedding a powerful, human light on the tragedy of lost potential.
I had to slow down reading Annelies to better absorb the beauty and power of David Gillham’s words. His depth of understanding of human resilience and our capacity to survive and find the light after unimaginable darkness is a gift. A stunning evocation of the human spirit and its ability to inspire across borders, languages, and decades.
What would have happened to Anne Frank if she survived? David Gillham has created a riveting story if Anne Frank survived. I couldn’t put the book down. However you need to read it carefully to understand the full concept of the story and how her life would have been.
What young girl hasn’t read A Diary of a Young Girl while growing up? When I finished reading it, I re-read it a few more times and then wondered what would have happened if Anne Frank had lived. This is that story. The story of a young girl, who lived through hell, saw things no person should ever see, and she lived to tell about it.
Her story starts with her diary, the diary of a young girl telling about her life growing up with her mother and her father. There are typical teenage girl entries about the clashes with her mother, her wonderful sister Margot, and her perfect father. Then her life changes, her view of the world is tainted, and the diary isn’t that of a teenage girl. It is the story of living after concentration camps, of losing her family and friends, and of still living in fear of being a Jew.
I had so many feelings while reading her story. I hated how her life had changed, I hated how unhappy she was yet I was so proud of how strong she was, how she was able to put one foot in front of the other and move on with her life. She still was vocal about what she wanted, what she thought, and what she needed but she was miserable, she was in a dark place, and she wasn’t happy. There are no easy answers as to how to get her life back on track, how to be happy again. Being happy is something Anne Frank has to do for herself and it is not easy.
Anne Frank has always been of interest, and Mr. Gillham creates a heartbreaking re-telling of what she and her family endured and what her life could have been had she survived.
We follow Anne before, during, and after the war that describes her family’s confinement and the horrors they endured at the concentration camps.
Mr. Gillham brings Anne back to life and fictitiously lets us see how she is trying to put her life back together as she reunites with her father who in actuality is the only surviving family member.
The detailed writing and re-telling will hold your interest from the minute you begin reading.
This book is a tribute to all of those who suffered, survived, perished, and helped in any way possible during history’s darkest hours.
Mr. Gillham did an outstanding job of researching as well as using a creative method of portraying Anne Frank’s life as it may have been even though she did not survive the Holocaust.
Through Mr. Gillham’s marvelous writing style we are transported back in time as we experience what Anne experienced during her captivity and as she tries to re-enter her previous life that is always filled with the presence and reminders of her captors and how she had to comply.
ANNELIES is a beautiful, heartfelt book you will want to absorb with attention to every detail.
Anne seems as though she was and would have been a feisty young lady that the world has missed and could have learned from. 5/5
This book was given to me as ARC by the author in exchange for an honest review.
David R. Gillham, you have written a masterpiece! You have honored Anne and those who suffered so greatly. Thank you for showing us what Amsterdam was like before and after the war and what bright stars we are missing in our world because of such darkness. #FiveStarGold #mustread #Beautifullywritten #MasterPiece