Tharindu Dissanayake's Reviews > The Diary of a Young Girl

"Riches, prestige, everything can be lost. But the happiness in your own heart can only be dimmed; it will always be there, as long as you live, to make you happy again."

I'm not sure if I can review this book properly. I started a few times before, but, it is just too difficult...I really wish I had skipped the Afterward section and read it sometime after. I don't recall being this sad after reading a book...

"Memories mean more to me than dresses."

"I once asked Margot if she thought I was ugly. She said that I was cute and had nice eyes. A little vague, don't you thing?"

From the very start, I found the style of writing to be very captivating, which could be hugely attributed to the fact that everything is completely genuine. As this was never intended to be shared with others, Anne does not hold back when it comes to confiding all her feelings, experiences and expectations in her ever trustworthy journal - Kitty.

"I've been taking valerian every day to fight the anxiety and depression, but it doesn't stop me from being even more miserable the next day. A good hearty laugh would help better than ten valerian drops, but we've almost forgotten how to laugh."

"Despite all my theories and efforts, I miss - every day and every hour of the day - having a mother who understands me."

In my opinion, one of the key ways this book can help all readers is by enhancing everyone's ability to empathize, not just with a teenager. Anne's experiences shine a special light on how much children suffer, due to them not being able to freely communicate or confide in others. One might say that it's just how it is with teenagers, and they'll grow out of it, but Anne's own statements contradict that - at least to an extent. When she revisits some of her earlier entries, though she regrets the fact that she feels much anger toward her mother, she never recovers completely, or finds it possible to completely forgive her. She still holds some contempt for not been able to make herself herd by her mother.

"I do my best to please everyone, more than they'd ever suspect in a million years."

"I soothe my conscience with the thought that it's better for unkind words to be down on paper than for Mother to have to carry them around in her heart."

"I continued to sit with the open book in my hand and wonder why I was filled with so much anger and hate that I had to confide it all to you."

It's heartbreaking to see how she suffered, when she dreamt of her friends and grandmother, and the way she kept it all together in the midst of all other difficulties. Even an adult would have had a hard time under similar circumstances. But for a child... and thousands of others who went through similar devastations...

"I was very sad again last night. Grandma and Hanneli came to me once more. Grandma, oh my sweet Grandma. How lonely Grandma must have been, in spite of us. You can be lonely even when you're loved by many people,"
"And Hanneli? Is she still alive? What's she doing? Dear God, watch over her and bring her back to us. Hanneli, you're a reminder of what my fate might have been. I keep seeing myself in your place."

If I didn't say something of some of the happy memories, it will be unfair to the book. Because, even when you take away the fact that everything in this book is genuine, the style of writing - especially for an 13 year old girl - is beyond amazing. The first half of the books is going to keep you laughing, for Anne relates the day-to-day events in such an amusing way. Most readers will find the series of events to be an emotional rollercoaster. It's amazing how well she manages to record everything, relating them to people, time of day, her own feelings and many more.

"Upstairs it sounds like thunder, but it's only Mrs. van D's bed being shoved against the window so that Her Majesty, arrayed in her pink bed jacket, can sniff the air through her delicate little nostrils."

"A few nights ago I was the topic of discussion, and we all decided I was an ignoramus."

"Dearest Kitty, Pim is expecting the invasion any day now. Churchill has had pneumonia, but is gradually getting better. Gandhi, the champion of Indian freedom, is on one of his umpteenth hunger strikes."

"Gandhi is eating again."

"You've known for a long time that my greatest wish is to be a journalist, and later on, a famous writer."
Yes, she would've been an amazing writer. In fact, she already has become one. How cruel it is that the hopes and dreams of millions get destroyed because of the thoughtless actions of a few.

"We still love life, we haven't yet forgotten the voice of nature, and we keep hoping, hoping for...everything."

All I can hope is that she kept the hope kindled till the end and never gave up.