Leibiger, Carol A.

English

USD RED (University of South Dakota)

University of South Dakota USD RED Faculty Publications University Libraries 2019 Review of Anne Frank's Diary: The Graphic Adaptation Carol A. Leibiger University of South Dakota, C.Leibiger@usd.edu Follow this and additional works at: https://red.library.usd.edu/ul-fp  Part of the Jewish Studies Commons Recommended Citation Leibiger, Carol A. Review of Anne Frank’s Diary: The Graphic Adaptation, by Anne Frank. Adapted by Ari Folman. Illustrations by David Polonsky. The Key Reporter, 1 Aug. 2019. http://www.keyreporter.org/BookReviews/LifeOfTheMind/Details/2755.html This Book Review is brought to you for free and open access by the University Libraries at USD RED. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications by an authorized administrator of USD RED. For more information, please contact dloftus@usd.edu. Anne Frank’s Diary: The Graphic Adaptationkeyreporter.org/BookReviews/LifeOfTheMind/Details/2755.htmlBy Carol A. LeibigerThe diary kept by Anne Frank, who would have celebratedher ninetieth birthday this year, is acclaimed as an iconictext of Jewish life under Nazi oppression as recounted by atalented and perceptive teenage writer. A gift received forher thirteenth birthday, Anne’s diary accompanied her intohiding in 1942 and was her constant companion andconfidante until her capture in August, 1944. (Anne died oftyphus in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in early1945.) At the request of the Anne Frank-Fonds, the Swissfoundation established by Otto Frank to support thediary’s continued publication, Israeli director, screenwriter,and composer Ari Folman has collaborated with animatorDavid Polonsky to adapt the diary in graphic form. Basedon the 50th-anniversary The Diary of a Young Girl: The Definitive Edition (Doubleday, 1995), theadaptation is richly and imaginatively illustrated. It engagingly presents the highlights ofAnne’s diary, rendering her descriptions of life before and in hiding and including herreactions to and reflections on her personal life, her interactions with family members,other inhabitants of the annex, and their Dutch helpers, as well as life under the Naziregime. In order to render Anne’s diary graphically, adapter Folman has abridged the original text,omitting some entries and combining others. In most cases the abridgment simply removesentries with repetitive content. For instance, Anne’s often stated jealousy of and comparisonof herself with her older sister Margot are fused by Polonsky into a single page ofillustrations that powerfully communicate Anne’s feelings. A less useful abridgment entailsthe omission of Anne’s comments on previous entries. The diary was not merely areceptacle for Anne’s thoughts and feelings about her current life. She also engaged withpast entries, commenting on them from a distance of one or two years, demonstratinggrowing maturity, sensitivity, and moderation. None of these reflective comments areincluded in the adaptation, resulting in a less nuanced, more linear account than that of thediary. While most of the abridgment of content is not noticeable, one combinationintroduces a factual error. According to the diary, the Frank family celebrated Hanukkah andthe feast of St. Nicholas (December 6) concurrently wile in hiding. The adaptation conflatesthe feast of St. Nicholas with Christmas, indicating that the Frank family celebrated1/2Hanukkah and Christmas at the same time, which was not possible according to thecalendars of 1942 and 1943. Moreover, there is no evidence in the diary that the Frankscelebrated Christmas, beyond exchanging presents with their Dutch helpers. Anne Frank’s diary is one of the twentieth century’s most significant texts; it remainsrelevant as a personal story of the transcendence of the human spirit in the face of greatevil. Anne Frank’s Diary is a welcome addition to the adaptations of Anne’s diary. This visuallypowerful and textually engaging adaptation will surely gain new readers for The Diary of aYoung Girl and thus contribute to the endurance of Anne Frank and her legacy.Carol A. Leibiger (ΦΒΚ, University of Connecticut, 1977) is Associate Professor in the I.D. WeeksLibrary at the University of South Dakota and a resident member of the Alpha of South Dakotachapter of Phi Beta Kappa.(Posted on 8/1/2019 )2/2

Review of Anne Frank\u27s Diary: The Graphic Adaptation

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Review of Anne Frank\u27s Diary: The Graphic Adaptation

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