Dogar, Sharon. Annexed.

Dogar, Sharon Annexed
Houghton Mifflin/Clarion/Graphia/Kingfisher 2010 341p 17.00 978-0-547-50195-6 ms/hs E-BN


Based on Anne Frank's diary, Peter relates the story from his perspective. The last quarter follows Peter to the concentration camps and an epilogue relates the true ending for all of the characters. One of the best of the Holocaust literature books. This title is based on Anne Frank's diary but in this story, Peter van Pels, the 16 year old hiding in the cramped attic with the others writes from his perspective. His thoughts are as introspective as Anne╒s but of course in this case are the author, Sharon Dogar's conceptualizations. The prickly relationship between Anne and Peter develops into a caring and somewhat romantic bond that is shared within extremely adverse conditions. The book is written in diary form and Peter╒s character is portrayed fully from his thoughts within. About three-quarters into the account, the people in the attic, as in the Diary of Anne Frank, are betrayed and sent to the concentration camps. Unlike Anne Frank's Diary, this book carries the story further as Peter describes the horrific journey in the box cars, the dreadful separation at the terrible destination, and then his, and others, further dehumanization. But, unlike Anne, Peter survives to tell his story before he dies. At the end of this tragic and moving book, Dogar includes an epilogue and reviews what happened to the people who were hidden in the attic. The writing is sensitive, compelling, and enlightening. This work of historical fiction will appeal to students in upper middle school and high school, especially those that read The Diary of Anne Frank. This is an excellent selection and a "must have" for holocaust collections. This book is recommended for TriState Books of Note - 2100. Historical Weinraub, Tina