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Otto Franks Geheimnis: Der Vater von Anne Frank und sein verborgenes Leben
Seine Tochter wurde zum berühmtesten Mädchen des 20. Jahrhunderts; bis heute ist das Schicksal der Anne Frank Millionen von Menschen vertraut. Aber wer war Otto Frank? Carol Anne Lee, seit ihrer großen Biographie über Anne Frank als Kennerin ausgewiesen, erzählt, wie Otto Frank (1889–1980) im reichen deutsch-jüdischen Bürgertum aufwuchs, nach einer arrangierten Ehe nach Amsterdam zog und dort ein erfolgreicher Geschäftsmann wurde. Gestützt auf bislang unbekannte Tagebücher Otto Franks vermag sie die Geschichte der Gefangenschaft im Hinterhaus zu schildern, bis zum bitteren Ende, das ihn als einzigen Überlebenden seiner Familie sah. Das Geheimnis jenes Menschen, der sich aufopferte, um das Vermächtnis der geliebten Tochter zu erfüllen, wird mit dieser fesselnden Biographie endlich gelöst.
496 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2002
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 106 reviews
August 25, 2018
Carol Ann Lee fills in some of the backstory gaps for readers of the Anne Frank diary. We all know the basic facts of the teenage girl who hid from the Nazis in Amsterdam with her father, mother, and sister, along with the van Pels and Mr. Pfeffer only to be outed and sent to Auschwitz so painfully close to the end of the war; however, most of us don't know the details of the life of Otto Frank, the father and only survivor of the group.
Lee is very good at painting little thumbnail sketches that seem to realistically portray minor events in the background story, and here she focuses on a very likely suspect who betrayed the family. Working from reams of research material collected by herself and other Anne Frank aficionados, she painstakingly pieces together the details of events spanning both the war years and decades after.
If I have any criticism, I would have to say I found the text to wander a little bit at times. Perhaps this is because the author has many threads here--Anne's story, the business dealings of Otto Frank, the progress of WWII, the host of characters who help Otto publish the diary and stage plays and movie adaptations of it, and in the background the continuous research of the different suspects who potentially betrayed the Jews hiding at 263 Prinsengracht. All of this can be a bit much to coordinate into a cohesive whole, especially while the various editions of the book were continually finding fresh evidence.
In any case, having recently visited Amsterdam and stood with a sense of awe directly in front of the Frank's business and hideout at 263 Prinsengracht, I found the book really interesting. In itself, it is a great resource of sources of the plight of Amsterdam's Jewish community under Nazi occupation. It provides a good picture of the whole story of the Frank family, giving detailed context to the tragically short life of the world's most famous diarist and WWII heroine, and perhaps settling one of the final questions: who betrayed Anne Frank?
Lee is very good at painting little thumbnail sketches that seem to realistically portray minor events in the background story, and here she focuses on a very likely suspect who betrayed the family. Working from reams of research material collected by herself and other Anne Frank aficionados, she painstakingly pieces together the details of events spanning both the war years and decades after.
If I have any criticism, I would have to say I found the text to wander a little bit at times. Perhaps this is because the author has many threads here--Anne's story, the business dealings of Otto Frank, the progress of WWII, the host of characters who help Otto publish the diary and stage plays and movie adaptations of it, and in the background the continuous research of the different suspects who potentially betrayed the Jews hiding at 263 Prinsengracht. All of this can be a bit much to coordinate into a cohesive whole, especially while the various editions of the book were continually finding fresh evidence.
In any case, having recently visited Amsterdam and stood with a sense of awe directly in front of the Frank's business and hideout at 263 Prinsengracht, I found the book really interesting. In itself, it is a great resource of sources of the plight of Amsterdam's Jewish community under Nazi occupation. It provides a good picture of the whole story of the Frank family, giving detailed context to the tragically short life of the world's most famous diarist and WWII heroine, and perhaps settling one of the final questions: who betrayed Anne Frank?
October 21, 2011
From the moment I began reading, I was completely engrossed. I hadn't ever read much about Otto, Anne's father, seeing as most of the literature about their family is focused solely upon Anne. However, this book proved to be an absolutely fascinating read, providing much needed background and insight into family dynamics from an adult perspective that helped to understand significance of events that I had read about previously in other books. The book begins with Otto's childhood in Germany and follows him through his life at a rather quick pace, slowing to really dig in after the family moves to Amsterdam in the 1930's when Hitler was rising to power in their native Germany.
The story follows Otto through his entire life, including very closely detailed accounts of his time in Auschwitz and his journey back to Holland after the war was over. Through all of it, a man named Tonny Ahlers plays a very key role, as it seems he blackmailed Otto Frank from very early on in the war until seemingly the day he died. Ahlers was a well-known anti-Semitic and friend of the German occupiers in Holland, well know in Amsterdam for betraying Jews he knew to be in hiding. Throughout the book, it would seem that Tonny Ahlers was the man who betrayed the Frank family, knowing early on about their hiding place and only letting them stay in order to continue to blackmail Otto. However, the final chapter in the book drops a starting bombshell, revealing that the person that called the SS that day in August of 1944 to betray the Frank family was actually a woman. That woman was Tonny Ahler's wife.
If you are at all interested in WW2, the Holocaust, or history in general, read this book. It's fantastic.
The story follows Otto through his entire life, including very closely detailed accounts of his time in Auschwitz and his journey back to Holland after the war was over. Through all of it, a man named Tonny Ahlers plays a very key role, as it seems he blackmailed Otto Frank from very early on in the war until seemingly the day he died. Ahlers was a well-known anti-Semitic and friend of the German occupiers in Holland, well know in Amsterdam for betraying Jews he knew to be in hiding. Throughout the book, it would seem that Tonny Ahlers was the man who betrayed the Frank family, knowing early on about their hiding place and only letting them stay in order to continue to blackmail Otto. However, the final chapter in the book drops a starting bombshell, revealing that the person that called the SS that day in August of 1944 to betray the Frank family was actually a woman. That woman was Tonny Ahler's wife.
If you are at all interested in WW2, the Holocaust, or history in general, read this book. It's fantastic.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 5, 2017
This was ok. To me it was like reading a textbook. I'm just so partial to historical fiction. :)
August 15, 2007
When we think of the Holocaust we see its horror and inhumanity in grainy photographs of a dark-eyed teenage girl--a gifted writer and romantic with dreams of having her fiction published following the Allied Forces' inevitable victory in World War II, but died during a typhus outbreak at Bergen-Belsen and buried in a mass grave three weeks before the camp was liberated by British troops. We all read Diary of a Young Girl in school; we all see in Anne Frank the sad, broken eyes of the six million.
And yet, after reading this biography of Anne's father, I'm compelled now to see him as the most tragic victim of the Nazi's genocide. As the only inhabitant of the Secret Annex to survive the concentration camps, he spent months searching for his family, only to learn they all had died in agonizing pain and all that remained were the scribbled journals of his youngest daughter who countered the chaos of a world at war with the confusion of girl on the verge of womanhood.
Otto Frank lived to be 91 years old, yet he never gained peace or closure. Not only did he remain haunted by his experiences in the war, this book reveals that he was blackmailed for the remainder of his life, perhaps by the same informant who anonymously tipped off the SS about the Secret Annex.
And yet, after reading this biography of Anne's father, I'm compelled now to see him as the most tragic victim of the Nazi's genocide. As the only inhabitant of the Secret Annex to survive the concentration camps, he spent months searching for his family, only to learn they all had died in agonizing pain and all that remained were the scribbled journals of his youngest daughter who countered the chaos of a world at war with the confusion of girl on the verge of womanhood.
Otto Frank lived to be 91 years old, yet he never gained peace or closure. Not only did he remain haunted by his experiences in the war, this book reveals that he was blackmailed for the remainder of his life, perhaps by the same informant who anonymously tipped off the SS about the Secret Annex.
June 18, 2008
I am forever changed by the account of Otto Frank's life before, during, and after WWII. His outlook on humanity is truly to be admired. His words inspire me to look beyond my own hang-ups. He was a true humanitarian against all odds. His love for his family is unparalleled. And, his desire to keep Anne's words alive was unfailing.
This book also sheds light on the person/people who might have been responsible in betraying the families hiding at 263 Prinsengracht, Amsterdam.
This book also sheds light on the person/people who might have been responsible in betraying the families hiding at 263 Prinsengracht, Amsterdam.
March 11, 2022
I'm sure I already reviewed this biography a few years ago, but here it is.
After having read Melissa Mueller's biography on Anne Frank I decided to reread "The Hidden Life of Otto Frank" next in which she makes a convincing point for Tonny Ahlers being the one who betrayed the hiding place in Prinsengracht 263.
So I don't really understand why the team around Vince Pancoke decided to do a 6 year long investigation culminating in Rosemary Sullivan's book "Who betrayed Anne Frank?". But Sullivan's book is a fascinating book nevertheless which I enjoyed reading and hope to see a documentary soon as one of the members of the Pancoke group was a Dutch film maker.
Back to "Hidden Life".
It's very interesting as it tells the reader more about what was going on in Otto Frank's life in the decades following his return from Auschwitz. From reading Melissa Mueller's book I had no idea how much trouble Otto Frank had with Meyer Levin regarding the stage play of "The Diary of Anne Frank", especially once Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett took over and finished writing the play.
The reader also gets a better idea about Otto's second wife, her daughter and later family.
It's a wonderful biography, very well-researched and deserves 5 stars.
After having read Melissa Mueller's biography on Anne Frank I decided to reread "The Hidden Life of Otto Frank" next in which she makes a convincing point for Tonny Ahlers being the one who betrayed the hiding place in Prinsengracht 263.
So I don't really understand why the team around Vince Pancoke decided to do a 6 year long investigation culminating in Rosemary Sullivan's book "Who betrayed Anne Frank?". But Sullivan's book is a fascinating book nevertheless which I enjoyed reading and hope to see a documentary soon as one of the members of the Pancoke group was a Dutch film maker.
Back to "Hidden Life".
It's very interesting as it tells the reader more about what was going on in Otto Frank's life in the decades following his return from Auschwitz. From reading Melissa Mueller's book I had no idea how much trouble Otto Frank had with Meyer Levin regarding the stage play of "The Diary of Anne Frank", especially once Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett took over and finished writing the play.
The reader also gets a better idea about Otto's second wife, her daughter and later family.
It's a wonderful biography, very well-researched and deserves 5 stars.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 5, 2009
This was my fourth book about Holocaust but I still got depressed and sad. However, I am giving this book a star less than the last one AUSCHWITZ: THE NEW HISTORY. The reason is that almost half of the book deals with who betrayed the Anne Frank and her family which for me should not be the main motivation for the readers.
For me, what is really makes the book interesting is to find out what happened after the betrayal. It's been almost a couple of decades back since I read ANNE FRANK: THE DIARY OF A YOUNG GIRL. Sure, it was mentioned in that book that Anne and her sister Margot died in Bergen-Belsen later but it did not say how. I am not sure if it got included in the other books about this Frank family but this book was where I read about it and it was that scene that really made me sad.
As a father myself, I could relate to the anguish that Otto felt having lost his daughters and wife. However, I admire his courage to push for the publication of Anne's diary as it was the right thing to do. Even here in the Philippines, it is a required reading in some high schools as it shows that war is just not the solution to world conflicts. Having a young girl's voice makes the book the best vehicle to deliver that message to them.
For me, what is really makes the book interesting is to find out what happened after the betrayal. It's been almost a couple of decades back since I read ANNE FRANK: THE DIARY OF A YOUNG GIRL. Sure, it was mentioned in that book that Anne and her sister Margot died in Bergen-Belsen later but it did not say how. I am not sure if it got included in the other books about this Frank family but this book was where I read about it and it was that scene that really made me sad.
As a father myself, I could relate to the anguish that Otto felt having lost his daughters and wife. However, I admire his courage to push for the publication of Anne's diary as it was the right thing to do. Even here in the Philippines, it is a required reading in some high schools as it shows that war is just not the solution to world conflicts. Having a young girl's voice makes the book the best vehicle to deliver that message to them.
July 6, 2020
This is a fascinating biography of Otto Frank, which includes what he did with his life after World War II. It looks into who most likely betrayed the eight in the Annex, and answers many of the questions I had about the family after their capture. Getting Anne's diary translated and published in all the different countries was much more complicated than I would have thought. So was getting it brought to the stage and eventually to the cinema. Preserving the Annex when the building was going to be knocked down was a harrowing story as well. This is a very worthwhile and well researched piece of
non-fiction!
non-fiction!
December 10, 2024
This author did extensive research while writing this book. There were many interesting facts revealed that I had not read before on this subject. I thoroughly loved reading about the efforts Otto Frank made in preserving his daughter's story.
October 31, 2011
Narrative and truth are, at times, subjective especially in the case of narrative. Truth is also subjective. This idea of narrative and truth come into play in this book.
Lee's book is somewhat a biography of Otto Frank as well as a proposal for who betrayed or informed on the Franks. The edition I have was apparently updated slightly after the furor raised by the first. It should be noted that this is not a complete look at the afterlife of Anne's diary, for that read Anne Frank: The Book, The Life, The Afterlife.
Lee does an excellent job of looking at Otto Frank, bopth before and after the attic hiding place. In particular, Lee's description of Frank's experiences in the camps and after liberation should be required reading in any class that is using the diary. Additionally, Lee is aware that the diary only presents one, extremely filtered view and Otto Frank himself didn't tell us (the reading public) much about Edith and Margot Frank. The two shadowy members of the Frank family get some acknowledgement here. Lee notes that it is extremely difficult to write about Edith as her family is dead, and as for Margot, her diary is missing and presumed destoryed. It is important, therefore, that she includes Otto Frank's reaction to reading some passages in Anne Frank's diary that include infromation about Margot.
The book itself does make the reader think about some things. Not only of the characters of Edith and Margot Frank, but of the mystery of the other attic residents and even the helpers. Such as the question of fairness in some of the protrayals in the play and movie. Isn't it rather unfair to the family of Pfeffer (Dussel)? Anne's diary, in part re-written by her and then edited by her father- in what way does this change the narrative? Would Margot's diary have been more honest? Why the anger when one helper was going to write a book? Why was it okay for Miep to write one?
Lee answer's some of these questions; Pfeffer's wife, for instance, thought about a lawsuit. She also offers, indirectly perhaps, a reason for Edith Frank's behavior in the attic (she wanted to emigrate to the U.S., long before Germany invaded the Netherlands).
As to the question of the infomrer. I can't say that Lee answers it, and she is very careful to only present her theory as a theory, an unproven theory. Interested readers can read online the detailed study about the informer question put out by the Netherlands Institute for War Documentation (a website with a link to the file - http://www.battledetective.com/misc.html)
Lee's book is somewhat a biography of Otto Frank as well as a proposal for who betrayed or informed on the Franks. The edition I have was apparently updated slightly after the furor raised by the first. It should be noted that this is not a complete look at the afterlife of Anne's diary, for that read Anne Frank: The Book, The Life, The Afterlife.
Lee does an excellent job of looking at Otto Frank, bopth before and after the attic hiding place. In particular, Lee's description of Frank's experiences in the camps and after liberation should be required reading in any class that is using the diary. Additionally, Lee is aware that the diary only presents one, extremely filtered view and Otto Frank himself didn't tell us (the reading public) much about Edith and Margot Frank. The two shadowy members of the Frank family get some acknowledgement here. Lee notes that it is extremely difficult to write about Edith as her family is dead, and as for Margot, her diary is missing and presumed destoryed. It is important, therefore, that she includes Otto Frank's reaction to reading some passages in Anne Frank's diary that include infromation about Margot.
The book itself does make the reader think about some things. Not only of the characters of Edith and Margot Frank, but of the mystery of the other attic residents and even the helpers. Such as the question of fairness in some of the protrayals in the play and movie. Isn't it rather unfair to the family of Pfeffer (Dussel)? Anne's diary, in part re-written by her and then edited by her father- in what way does this change the narrative? Would Margot's diary have been more honest? Why the anger when one helper was going to write a book? Why was it okay for Miep to write one?
Lee answer's some of these questions; Pfeffer's wife, for instance, thought about a lawsuit. She also offers, indirectly perhaps, a reason for Edith Frank's behavior in the attic (she wanted to emigrate to the U.S., long before Germany invaded the Netherlands).
As to the question of the infomrer. I can't say that Lee answers it, and she is very careful to only present her theory as a theory, an unproven theory. Interested readers can read online the detailed study about the informer question put out by the Netherlands Institute for War Documentation (a website with a link to the file - http://www.battledetective.com/misc.html)
March 26, 2008
A rather salacious sounding title, but in fact it's not really the stuff of the National Enquirer.
Otto Frank is primarily known as the father of Anne Frank and this biography tries to give him more dimension. In her diary Anne talks about her parents' as not being a love match and the book provides supporting information.
The book also names Tonny Ahlers as the betrayer. Members of the Ahlers family are quoted as agreeing that he was. Ahlers is mentioned as having blackmailed Otto Frank even after the war to hide the fact that his company had actually been doing business with the German army, a revelation that would have been quite embarassing in the post war years as his daughter became famous.
The heavy emphasis on Ahlers was a drag on the entire book. Yes, it's an interesting bit of information but not worthy of all the space given it.
Otto Frank is primarily known as the father of Anne Frank and this biography tries to give him more dimension. In her diary Anne talks about her parents' as not being a love match and the book provides supporting information.
The book also names Tonny Ahlers as the betrayer. Members of the Ahlers family are quoted as agreeing that he was. Ahlers is mentioned as having blackmailed Otto Frank even after the war to hide the fact that his company had actually been doing business with the German army, a revelation that would have been quite embarassing in the post war years as his daughter became famous.
The heavy emphasis on Ahlers was a drag on the entire book. Yes, it's an interesting bit of information but not worthy of all the space given it.
March 8, 2009
This is one of those books that I found interesting for a number of reasons that the author may not have intended. Was not impressed by the question of who informed on the families nor did I find it compelling to understand the reasoning for the conclusions (or lack of them) re this topic. I did enjoy reading about the Otto's quandries and decisions about how to deal with the material from the diary and who to involve in the different stages of the process...including the play and the movie.
March 22, 2024
Knowing nearly nothing about Otto Frank, I thoroughly enjoyed this read, despite it being intended for people who already know a decent amount about the Franks. Despite the absurd and agitating facts the author uncovers, she remains unbiased in her portrayal of Otto's hidden life. With every decision Otto makes, she weighs his intentions along with the context of the period, and details who his decisions affected and their responses. After reading this book, I can make a good assumption about Otto Frank. Like most people, Otto was a flawed person, deeply affected by his loss during the Holocaust, but he hoped he could put good into the world after the horrors of what he and so many Jewish people experienced. He may be highly critiqued, but I understand his intentions, and they were good.
I especially liked how the author weaved in the betrayal of the Franks in small bits, and the revelation of this information was always relevant to Otto's stage of life. This made the writing much easier to digest, and this technique of teasing small bits about their betrayal kept me reading. Overall, Lee's writing kept me engaged, and I'm so glad I read this book.
I especially liked how the author weaved in the betrayal of the Franks in small bits, and the revelation of this information was always relevant to Otto's stage of life. This made the writing much easier to digest, and this technique of teasing small bits about their betrayal kept me reading. Overall, Lee's writing kept me engaged, and I'm so glad I read this book.
February 1, 2017
Who is Otto Frank?
Like millions of people across the globe, the name is familiar to me. He is the father of Anne Frank and the only surviving member of her (immediate) family from the nazi concentration camps of WWII. Whilst Anne Frank is known all over the world for her diary - written whilst she was a teenager and mostly during her hiding from the Nazis - all I knew of her father was what I read in that diary. By chance I recently came across a memoir "After Auschwitz" by Eva Schloss, whose mother married Otto after the war. That gave me a tantalising glimpse of a most fascinating man. I needed to find out more. Thankfully I found this book, which is an extremely comprehensive biography (so comprehensive that at times it's not so interesting to read - too much minute detail, the narration broken up with nonstop direct references and dare I say it, too much Anne).
Having read a fair few books on wars, particularly WWII over the years, I still learnt so many new and fascinating things about that time from this book. For instance I had no idea China was involved in the war. I have always wondered what happened to the detainees when the concentration camps were liberated (some pretty shocking answers to be found here) and how they had to go about picking up the pieces of their lives (sadly it was with little to no help from anyone!). Then, if all that wasn't bad enough, due to the confusion at the end of the war and the Nazis trying to destroy the evidence of their crimes, some people did not find out the fate of their relatives until over 40 years after the end of the war!
The author was able to find out so many little fascinating details about Otto Frank's life - like him hiding their possessions amongst several friends in Amsterdam before going into hiding - from birth until his death. It's amazing what sources were still available to her when researching this book (many years after the end of this life).
The authors reasons for pointing her finger at Tonny Ahlers, being the one who turned the Frank's & associates over to the Nazis was very interesting reading. Sadly - in my opinion - I doubt the truth will every come out for certain.
I was very cross and saddened to read about the other people trying to take ownership of Anne's words, taking complete advantage of an innocent man trying to do good. Shame on them!
Otto really did lead a really interesting life, through some very extraordinary circumstances. What struck me was he never lost his love of life and people. His work after the was to educate the world where we went wrong and teach love, compassion and tolerance I think. Because the man who lost everything found it in his heart to still love. And chose to give the most precious thing he ever had to the world - his daughter Anne - even though doing so he pretty much became lost to the world. Anne is much loved and celebrated, now finally Otto gets a voice.
Like millions of people across the globe, the name is familiar to me. He is the father of Anne Frank and the only surviving member of her (immediate) family from the nazi concentration camps of WWII. Whilst Anne Frank is known all over the world for her diary - written whilst she was a teenager and mostly during her hiding from the Nazis - all I knew of her father was what I read in that diary. By chance I recently came across a memoir "After Auschwitz" by Eva Schloss, whose mother married Otto after the war. That gave me a tantalising glimpse of a most fascinating man. I needed to find out more. Thankfully I found this book, which is an extremely comprehensive biography (so comprehensive that at times it's not so interesting to read - too much minute detail, the narration broken up with nonstop direct references and dare I say it, too much Anne).
Having read a fair few books on wars, particularly WWII over the years, I still learnt so many new and fascinating things about that time from this book. For instance I had no idea China was involved in the war. I have always wondered what happened to the detainees when the concentration camps were liberated (some pretty shocking answers to be found here) and how they had to go about picking up the pieces of their lives (sadly it was with little to no help from anyone!). Then, if all that wasn't bad enough, due to the confusion at the end of the war and the Nazis trying to destroy the evidence of their crimes, some people did not find out the fate of their relatives until over 40 years after the end of the war!
The author was able to find out so many little fascinating details about Otto Frank's life - like him hiding their possessions amongst several friends in Amsterdam before going into hiding - from birth until his death. It's amazing what sources were still available to her when researching this book (many years after the end of this life).
The authors reasons for pointing her finger at Tonny Ahlers, being the one who turned the Frank's & associates over to the Nazis was very interesting reading. Sadly - in my opinion - I doubt the truth will every come out for certain.
I was very cross and saddened to read about the other people trying to take ownership of Anne's words, taking complete advantage of an innocent man trying to do good. Shame on them!
Otto really did lead a really interesting life, through some very extraordinary circumstances. What struck me was he never lost his love of life and people. His work after the was to educate the world where we went wrong and teach love, compassion and tolerance I think. Because the man who lost everything found it in his heart to still love. And chose to give the most precious thing he ever had to the world - his daughter Anne - even though doing so he pretty much became lost to the world. Anne is much loved and celebrated, now finally Otto gets a voice.
August 20, 2014
Full Review: http://www.thebookwormslibrary.com/?p...
Lee documents the life of Otto Frank — Anne’s father — and his professional world in business prior to the Nazi occupation. It is within this context that the earliest stages of this tragedy actually started. One of the greatest mysteries of what happened in those last days prior to arrest is who betrayed the family to the Nazi’s and why. Lee does a great job of researching and presenting the documents and historical record of Otto Frank’s life and his business interactions with others. She opens the door into how the business world can so dramatically impact on personal lives of not only an individual, but a family as well. Her research into this topic adds a great deal of depth to the history and gives us an insight into why the family needed to go into hiding and how they were able to make the arrangements in a time when absolute secrecy was required. It also explores how those willing to hide the Frank family were more than just neighborhood good Samaritans. Rather, it was Frank’s business associates who were willing to make the ultimate sacrifice and risk everything to protect their business associate, friends and families. But it was also some of these relationships that would betray everything they professed, to gain favor in the eyes of the ruling Nazi party. Essentially — this is the adult account of the Frank family tragedy and why it happened the way it did.
Lee documents the life of Otto Frank — Anne’s father — and his professional world in business prior to the Nazi occupation. It is within this context that the earliest stages of this tragedy actually started. One of the greatest mysteries of what happened in those last days prior to arrest is who betrayed the family to the Nazi’s and why. Lee does a great job of researching and presenting the documents and historical record of Otto Frank’s life and his business interactions with others. She opens the door into how the business world can so dramatically impact on personal lives of not only an individual, but a family as well. Her research into this topic adds a great deal of depth to the history and gives us an insight into why the family needed to go into hiding and how they were able to make the arrangements in a time when absolute secrecy was required. It also explores how those willing to hide the Frank family were more than just neighborhood good Samaritans. Rather, it was Frank’s business associates who were willing to make the ultimate sacrifice and risk everything to protect their business associate, friends and families. But it was also some of these relationships that would betray everything they professed, to gain favor in the eyes of the ruling Nazi party. Essentially — this is the adult account of the Frank family tragedy and why it happened the way it did.
March 18, 2025
As an American reading this in 2025, this book had a profound and different impact on me than it likely would have if I’d read it when I first received it as a gift nearly two decades ago.
This was really dense and overwhelming with details at some points, which was hard for me given my style of reading, but showed the impeccable research that went into the book. It felt like a textbook. That said, I truly enjoyed learning more about Otto Frank and his commitment to the diary after Anne’s death. His protective nature is intriguing, but I think generally shows how gentle of a person he was, despite everything he had been through. I definitely have some questions about him/his actions, but I know a lot will forever be unknown or can only be speculated. I liked learning about his history and just the (still) unresolved story of who betrayed the Franks and Pfeffers. The story through his lens was fascinating. Incredible research work on the author’s part.
I have read multiple versions of the diary, as well as Anne Frank’s biography. I have had this book for probably 20 years and have never read it. I’m heading to Amsterdam for a work trip and got tickets to the Anne Frank House so wanted to revisit the story before my trip. This provided so much detail and things I wouldn’t have otherwise known (including history of Amsterdam during the war) and made me even more excited to visit the museum.
This was really dense and overwhelming with details at some points, which was hard for me given my style of reading, but showed the impeccable research that went into the book. It felt like a textbook. That said, I truly enjoyed learning more about Otto Frank and his commitment to the diary after Anne’s death. His protective nature is intriguing, but I think generally shows how gentle of a person he was, despite everything he had been through. I definitely have some questions about him/his actions, but I know a lot will forever be unknown or can only be speculated. I liked learning about his history and just the (still) unresolved story of who betrayed the Franks and Pfeffers. The story through his lens was fascinating. Incredible research work on the author’s part.
I have read multiple versions of the diary, as well as Anne Frank’s biography. I have had this book for probably 20 years and have never read it. I’m heading to Amsterdam for a work trip and got tickets to the Anne Frank House so wanted to revisit the story before my trip. This provided so much detail and things I wouldn’t have otherwise known (including history of Amsterdam during the war) and made me even more excited to visit the museum.
November 17, 2013
Not all its cracked up to be. First of all, there's no "hidden life," not really, as the title implies. Second of all, although there are a few new pieces of information on Otto Frank's life, especially his younger days and his time in the concentration camps, ultimately there's very little that hasn't already been published by 3000 other books on this subject.
Well, that's not entirely true. The problem is, the "new information" touted in this book is that the author finally, at last, reveals who the REAL betrayer of the ones in hiding is! Yeah, I don't care. Calm your tits, let me explain:
Of course I care. However, I have read probably half a dozen books on the lives of the Frank family, the others in hiding, and their helpers. And all of them, EVERY SINGLE ONE, purports to have the final, the ultimate, the rock-solid air-tight proof of who the betrayer is. And every single one names someone different. So when I say I don't care, I mean I don't care to read hundreds of pages about yet another potential betrayer who has no more evidence for/against them than any others, totally based on this one person's theory/wish fulfillment. It's really like the authors just play a game of "round up the usual suspects," because at this point, the betrayer of the Frank family & co. is the Schroedinger's cat of holocaust mysteries - as far as I'm concerned, they're all in the box, and none of them are.
Well, that's not entirely true. The problem is, the "new information" touted in this book is that the author finally, at last, reveals who the REAL betrayer of the ones in hiding is! Yeah, I don't care. Calm your tits, let me explain:
Of course I care. However, I have read probably half a dozen books on the lives of the Frank family, the others in hiding, and their helpers. And all of them, EVERY SINGLE ONE, purports to have the final, the ultimate, the rock-solid air-tight proof of who the betrayer is. And every single one names someone different. So when I say I don't care, I mean I don't care to read hundreds of pages about yet another potential betrayer who has no more evidence for/against them than any others, totally based on this one person's theory/wish fulfillment. It's really like the authors just play a game of "round up the usual suspects," because at this point, the betrayer of the Frank family & co. is the Schroedinger's cat of holocaust mysteries - as far as I'm concerned, they're all in the box, and none of them are.
September 29, 2015
So at last we know who betrayed the Frank,Van Piels and Pffeffer family from the annexe, I am not good with not knowing these things, reading about Otto, and some background to his life also gives another view to the diary. To have been so close to the end of the war, to have been the very last transport to be sent to Poland & Germany, to have been so close that knowing Otto was an ex German Soldier would have meant a different camp so many near misses that culminated into one bit hit, so see insights into the book being published and the film made, I think above all else, whether you believe Otto Frank solely published to make money, to pursue education that this didn't happen again, to ease his pain, one thing is clear he loved and was very proud of Anne, I also never knew that Margot had also made a diary sadly lost, the betrayer's family loathing of the man, not just for the telling of the Frank family location as well as other people but his demeanour, his sadist nature, his sons went to his funeral to make sure he was dead, whilst Otto Frank was loved by those who knew him. Each generation seems to have people who want to annihilate a race, a religious faction, a 'type' of people and for me it's a shame the holocaust didn't teach all of us that hatred & taking of a life will never achieve anything.
June 14, 2020
This is an interesting addendum to Anne Frank's diary. I read this quite a long time ago and have to admit, the impression left wasn’t exactly positive. To the author's credit, this has more to do with Otto Frank himself than her meticulous research and writing. I appreciate that Lees has taken the time to give an honest, candid portrait of Anne Frank's father and as a result, the Frank family as a whole. A real, complex man is presented to the reader, along with a real, very complex and at times disturbing set of familial relationships.
I do feel that too much of the book was dedicated to Lees assertion that Ahler was the informant on the family and the occupants of the secret annexe. The evidence, although convincing on the surface is truly nothing more than circumstantial. Thematically it feels like the books ends with a very big question rather than a full stop.
I do feel that too much of the book was dedicated to Lees assertion that Ahler was the informant on the family and the occupants of the secret annexe. The evidence, although convincing on the surface is truly nothing more than circumstantial. Thematically it feels like the books ends with a very big question rather than a full stop.
January 11, 2014
I am speechless as I finish this book,which could rightfully be re-titled, "Anne Frank: The Rest of the Story." Indeed, this rich history as described by Carol Ann Lee only serves to reveal more fully the depth and complexity of human experience so clearly depicted in Anne's original diaries. At times excruciating, it is never the less essential that one reads this book to the very last page in order to understand the full implications of what may ~ or may not ~ have happened on August 4,1944, and how those events informed the rest of Otto Frank's life almost as much as his daughter's writings had.
August 29, 2012
Prior to visiting the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam a few weeks ago, I read this engrossing account of how Otto Frank edited not only Anne's diary prior to release/publication, but how he also edited events and relationships he contributed to prior to the murder of his family. While we are not told what to think or what conclusions to emphatically arrive at, Carol Ann Lee does an incredible job of investigative reporting, lending a new look at the events that we in America have selectively repackaged. A great book to read in hand with the newly unedited Diary of Anne Frank.
November 9, 2012
A very important book if you want to understand the effects of the holocaust on families and, in Otto Frank's case, survivors. it provides the context into focus of Anne Frank's life...her forbears and the challenges her father faced in both the publishing and dramatic adaptations of the diary.
March 21, 2008
An interesting look into the life of Frank reveals many things, including the confirmation that he was not particularly fond of his wife Edith. All in all an interesting read.
April 3, 2021
I doubt if the brutality and inhumanity of dictatorships has ever been more vividly exposed than in this stunning biography. Otto Frank – Anne’s father – was one of the millions of innocent Jewish civilians persecuted by the Nazis after Adolf Hitler came to power in Germany in 1933.
His subsequent twelve years in office resulted in fear, degradation, physical abuse, torture and extermination for millions of Jews both in Germany and in German occupied territories in Europe – France, Belgium, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Greece, Denmark, Austria, Norway, Hungary and the Netherlands.
It was to the Netherlands that Otto Frank had fled with his family after attacks on Jews in Germany gained ever increasing momentum in the thirties. But after Hitler’s armies occupied Holland in 1940 the Frank family was once again exposed to the full horror of Nazism and its warped racist doctrines.
Some Jewish families escaped to Britain, American and neutral territories such as Switzerland, and Sweden. Those remaining faced loss of livelihood, continual harassment, blatant discrimination and ultimately certain death in concentration or extermination camps.
Having tried unsuccessfully to reach America, the Frank family ended up hiding like hunted animals, in a secret annex behind the premises of Otto Frank’s company in Amsterdam. It was here that Otto Franks’ daughter, Anne, began writing her diary – in which she recorded the thoughts, pressures and confusions of a young girl growing up in the highly abnormal environment of total isolation (with her sister and five adults) and with the ever present threat of discovery and deportation to a Nazi death camp.
That threat of discovery was particularly menacing in the light of fellow citizens who took a delight in exposing Jews to the Gestapo – a frightening outcome of the corrupt and sadistic behaviour which inevitably accompanies totalitarian regimes.
Who betrayed the Franks? The book looks at a long list of suspects, but there is no conclusive evidence against any of them. I feel the book dwells overly long on the betrayal –suffice it to say that somebody knew where they were hiding and alerted the Gestapo accordingly.
The horror of the family’s subsequent deportation to Germany makes very sad and disturbing reading. Like many others I was unaware of what happened to them in the camps, including the deaths of Otto’s wife Edith as well as his two daughters, Anne and Margot, in Bergen Belsen.
Otto was sent to Auschwitz and only survived because he was in hospital as the SS rounded up prisoners for the infamous death marches. Otherwise, he would most certainly have died and Anne’s poignant and penetrating account of her days in hiding might never have come to light.
The death marches from Auschwitz were initiated by the Germans to hide their barbarism from the Russian armies as they advanced into the Reich from the east. The prisoners – already sick, starved, and worked to death – were marched away from the camps in sub zero temperatures.
Upon his return to Amsterdam in 1945, Otto learned that Anne’s diary had been rescued from the ransacked hiding place by a work colleague who had aided the family’s concealment from the Nazis at 263 Prinsengracht in Amsterdam. He devoted much of the rest of his life to ensuring publication of the diaries and his daughter’s book became a massive worldwide best seller – in addition to being made into a film and stage play.
Otto was determined that everyone should know about the Holocaust and he directed the money from Anne’s book royalties exclusively to that end. Nevertheless, he was still accused of living off his dead daughter – a cruel allegation.
Otto Frank was clearly a man of great sensitivity, compassion and integrity who was determined to promote and preserve the unique achievements of his daughter - a daughter whose intelligence, awareness, humanity and exceptional writing skills have done so much to ensure the world never forgets the horrors of history’s most diabolical tyranny.
Despite living through the Holocaust and seeing all of his family murdered, Otto never degenerated into hatred. Like his beautiful daughter, he believed that there is some good in everybody. But it must have been hard to retain that faith. One of the most heart breaking passages of the book details Otto’s agony when learning of his daughters’ deaths from a lady who had miraculously survived Bergen Belsen. She described her first meeting with Anne and Margot in the camp:
‘Two scrawny threadbare figures emerged. They looked like little frozen birds. We laid down in the bunkhouse and wept. The frozen birds were Margot and Anne Frank.’
‘The Hidden Life of Otto Frank’ is a book to keep re reading. In today’s world of increasing religious intolerance, threats to free speech like the cancel culture, military coups and threats to democracy, it is essential to retain an ongoing awareness of the evils that dictatorships and repressive regimes can create – little frozen birds being a terrifying example.
His subsequent twelve years in office resulted in fear, degradation, physical abuse, torture and extermination for millions of Jews both in Germany and in German occupied territories in Europe – France, Belgium, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Greece, Denmark, Austria, Norway, Hungary and the Netherlands.
It was to the Netherlands that Otto Frank had fled with his family after attacks on Jews in Germany gained ever increasing momentum in the thirties. But after Hitler’s armies occupied Holland in 1940 the Frank family was once again exposed to the full horror of Nazism and its warped racist doctrines.
Some Jewish families escaped to Britain, American and neutral territories such as Switzerland, and Sweden. Those remaining faced loss of livelihood, continual harassment, blatant discrimination and ultimately certain death in concentration or extermination camps.
Having tried unsuccessfully to reach America, the Frank family ended up hiding like hunted animals, in a secret annex behind the premises of Otto Frank’s company in Amsterdam. It was here that Otto Franks’ daughter, Anne, began writing her diary – in which she recorded the thoughts, pressures and confusions of a young girl growing up in the highly abnormal environment of total isolation (with her sister and five adults) and with the ever present threat of discovery and deportation to a Nazi death camp.
That threat of discovery was particularly menacing in the light of fellow citizens who took a delight in exposing Jews to the Gestapo – a frightening outcome of the corrupt and sadistic behaviour which inevitably accompanies totalitarian regimes.
Who betrayed the Franks? The book looks at a long list of suspects, but there is no conclusive evidence against any of them. I feel the book dwells overly long on the betrayal –suffice it to say that somebody knew where they were hiding and alerted the Gestapo accordingly.
The horror of the family’s subsequent deportation to Germany makes very sad and disturbing reading. Like many others I was unaware of what happened to them in the camps, including the deaths of Otto’s wife Edith as well as his two daughters, Anne and Margot, in Bergen Belsen.
Otto was sent to Auschwitz and only survived because he was in hospital as the SS rounded up prisoners for the infamous death marches. Otherwise, he would most certainly have died and Anne’s poignant and penetrating account of her days in hiding might never have come to light.
The death marches from Auschwitz were initiated by the Germans to hide their barbarism from the Russian armies as they advanced into the Reich from the east. The prisoners – already sick, starved, and worked to death – were marched away from the camps in sub zero temperatures.
Upon his return to Amsterdam in 1945, Otto learned that Anne’s diary had been rescued from the ransacked hiding place by a work colleague who had aided the family’s concealment from the Nazis at 263 Prinsengracht in Amsterdam. He devoted much of the rest of his life to ensuring publication of the diaries and his daughter’s book became a massive worldwide best seller – in addition to being made into a film and stage play.
Otto was determined that everyone should know about the Holocaust and he directed the money from Anne’s book royalties exclusively to that end. Nevertheless, he was still accused of living off his dead daughter – a cruel allegation.
Otto Frank was clearly a man of great sensitivity, compassion and integrity who was determined to promote and preserve the unique achievements of his daughter - a daughter whose intelligence, awareness, humanity and exceptional writing skills have done so much to ensure the world never forgets the horrors of history’s most diabolical tyranny.
Despite living through the Holocaust and seeing all of his family murdered, Otto never degenerated into hatred. Like his beautiful daughter, he believed that there is some good in everybody. But it must have been hard to retain that faith. One of the most heart breaking passages of the book details Otto’s agony when learning of his daughters’ deaths from a lady who had miraculously survived Bergen Belsen. She described her first meeting with Anne and Margot in the camp:
‘Two scrawny threadbare figures emerged. They looked like little frozen birds. We laid down in the bunkhouse and wept. The frozen birds were Margot and Anne Frank.’
‘The Hidden Life of Otto Frank’ is a book to keep re reading. In today’s world of increasing religious intolerance, threats to free speech like the cancel culture, military coups and threats to democracy, it is essential to retain an ongoing awareness of the evils that dictatorships and repressive regimes can create – little frozen birds being a terrifying example.
February 26, 2023
Otto Heinrich Frank was born in Frankfurt in 1889 to a liberal Jewish family. He had the opportunity to study economics, and then traveled to the United States to spend time with friends while working at Macys. He returned to Germany before the onset of World War I, ultimately serving in the Imperial German Army. In fact, he was present at the infamous Battle of the Somme. After the war, he began his career at a bank. He married Edith in 1925. Their daughter, Margot, was born the following year, in 1926. Anne, their second daughter, was born in 1929. (Unfortunately, Edith died in Auschwitz from starvation/disease. Margot and Anne were removed to Bergen-Belsen, where they died from typhus.)
I had no idea that Otto Frank remarried after the death of his family. His second wife was a Holocaust survivor as well, and her daughter is a well known speaker about this topic, Eva Schloss. Of course, The Diary of Anne Frank was required reading in high school for me and helped to foster my interest and eventual degree path in World War II history. Otto Frank also kept his own diary, and this book is filled with personal reflections from that, which I very much enjoyed. This author did a tremendous about of research on this topic, and it really gave you a sense of the man behind Anne Frank and her diary. He had a very interesting life up to the point of the Holocaust, which I think has been overlooked and diminished in the wake of Anne's diary and the Holocaust itself. The Holocaust stripped away identities of millions of people, and this is just another point proven in that regard. I learned a great deal from this book, and I am glad that I ran across it. I would suggest reading this as a companion to the Anne Frank book if you want a more detailed family history for her.
I had no idea that Otto Frank remarried after the death of his family. His second wife was a Holocaust survivor as well, and her daughter is a well known speaker about this topic, Eva Schloss. Of course, The Diary of Anne Frank was required reading in high school for me and helped to foster my interest and eventual degree path in World War II history. Otto Frank also kept his own diary, and this book is filled with personal reflections from that, which I very much enjoyed. This author did a tremendous about of research on this topic, and it really gave you a sense of the man behind Anne Frank and her diary. He had a very interesting life up to the point of the Holocaust, which I think has been overlooked and diminished in the wake of Anne's diary and the Holocaust itself. The Holocaust stripped away identities of millions of people, and this is just another point proven in that regard. I learned a great deal from this book, and I am glad that I ran across it. I would suggest reading this as a companion to the Anne Frank book if you want a more detailed family history for her.
May 1, 2019
I have been very interested in Anne Frank for a while now and found this in a charity shop just before a weekend in Amsterdam. I was to be visiting the Anne Frank Museum and thought this would give me a deeper understanding of the family and their life before the war and Otto's life after the war.
It was an interesting read although I preferred the first half to the second half. The book became bogged down in details about having the Diary translated and published then the same with the play and finally the film of the Diary. That could have been condensed more.
I did learn more about Anne's relationship with her father or at least his side of it.
There was a lot of speculation about who had betrayed the family but no actual conclusion.
I also visited the Dutch Resistance Museum while in Amsterdam and so this tied in very well.
Worth a read if you are interested in Anne Frank or this period of Dutch/European history.
It was an interesting read although I preferred the first half to the second half. The book became bogged down in details about having the Diary translated and published then the same with the play and finally the film of the Diary. That could have been condensed more.
I did learn more about Anne's relationship with her father or at least his side of it.
There was a lot of speculation about who had betrayed the family but no actual conclusion.
I also visited the Dutch Resistance Museum while in Amsterdam and so this tied in very well.
Worth a read if you are interested in Anne Frank or this period of Dutch/European history.
May 6, 2024
Fascinating read. First, the not-so-good: could have used a little editing (a little too much passive and repetitive language) and, at times, becomes bogged down in details especially the legal entanglements involved in bringing the diary to the stage and screen. But, oh my! There is so much to learn here: the story of the extended Frank and Hollander families, of how Otto learned of his family's fate, of the diary's discovery and publication, and of how Anne Frank became one of the most famous and influential people in history. To give a flavor of the details: the son of Pfeffer (Dussel) survived the war and may have descendants alive today, the only descendants of the eight who hid in the annex. The book is more than twenty years old, so it does not reflect the latest research into the question of who betrayed those in hiding.
May 21, 2024
It is hard to believe that there could be new facts on a story so often told, but this book has them. There was another Anne Frank book that came out maybe 5-7 years ago that also had new facts (the name escapes me at the moment). I will read anything and everything about this family. This book focuses not on Anne but on Otto (as the title might suggest). Without giving too much away, it identifies (using a great number of research sources) one particular person in Otto Frank's orbit who is most likely responsible for the downfall of the families. The most mysterious part of the book is not the predictable (and frequent) reporting of Jews hiding out during WWII, but how Otto Frank dealt with this person, and why he did so, after the war ended.
If you are interested in books are this topic, you will find this book compelling.
If you are interested in books are this topic, you will find this book compelling.
April 20, 2020
Story about tragedy of inexpressible extent that hit the Jews. Told by one surviving member of a family.
Strong storyline and very emotional journey through this book. Very good written pre-story about daily life of one Jew family. It was easy to follow events and to understand the background. With every page it grew stronger and stronger. Until it was openly told about the very end of a following events. Very worth reading it. Did not enjoy as much though second part of a book which tried to explain all the conspiracy of a Anne’s diary... was really not tasty to read.
Human beings can withstand so much when they really must.
I live with the past every day, bet never init. My place is in the present.
Strong storyline and very emotional journey through this book. Very good written pre-story about daily life of one Jew family. It was easy to follow events and to understand the background. With every page it grew stronger and stronger. Until it was openly told about the very end of a following events. Very worth reading it. Did not enjoy as much though second part of a book which tried to explain all the conspiracy of a Anne’s diary... was really not tasty to read.
Human beings can withstand so much when they really must.
I live with the past every day, bet never init. My place is in the present.
March 9, 2021
This book is an interesting insight into the life of the father of Anne Frank. It spans his whole life including the time spent in hiding and in concentration camps. It then goes on to tell how he dedicated the rest of this life to ensuring Anne's diary was published and portrayed and preserving her memory. The author also pieces together much information regarding who may have betrayed the family when they were in hiding. At times the book was a little heavy going particularly in the beginning when discussing Mr Frank's business dealings. It is however, an important read. I was unaware of the difficulties those who returned from the concentration camps faced once back home and trying to restart their lives.
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