Reading Journal Post 3: Chapters 7-9

      Anneke and her family are woken up in the middle of the night for a census count in the rain. They stay out there amongst all the prisoners until early in the morning. Anneke finds out through word of mouth that the camp is going to undergo an "Embellishment". The Danish ambassadors are going to inspect the camp and rate its living standards, so the Nazis have decided to add benches, murals, and flowerpots to the streets.

       The census count was a harsh reminder to all prisoners of how horrible the conditions really were. The field was stuffed with over 40,000 people, and people were dropping to the ground in the cold. It was a truly demeaning event. People were starving, cold, uncomforable, and were not allowed to leave or use the bathroom properly. Anneke was angered by the situation, and felt helpless to stop it.

     Anneke finds this Embellishment deceitful and demeaning. She thinks to herself that

...though the camp is being embellished -- there are a few new benches, a playground with three seasaws, the barracks have been cut down so there are two tiers of beds, not three -- only the surface of our world has changed. We are still starving. We are still in danger of being sent on one of the transports. Death still stares us in the eye. (112)

      Anneke is also frustrated that no one else seems to see the mockery the Nazis are making of the prisoners. Her parents try to see the bright side of the situation, and this makes her feel as if they are not being real. Since her dad has to help with the Embellishment by painting murals, shes at first sees him at a hypocrite. Most likely, the adults of the camp have already accepted the fact that everything done by the enemy has a corrupt ulterior motive, and have learned to look past the awful truth and deal with what they have got. Anneke has not reached that stage yet. She still (understandably) sees the dark in all situations.

      The absense of Franticek also takes a toll on Anneke's well-being. She is upset that he is gone, and still thinks about him often. She has deep feelings for him, and she worries about him a lot. She says: "I'm convinced that without Franticek, my world would end. And because I woke up this morning, Franticek must still be alive, mustn't he?" (84) The hope that maybe, just maybe, she will see him again keeps her going every day.

           

Reading Journal Post 2: Chapters 4-6

      In these chapters, Anneke moves out of the Barracks’ bunk-houses and into a small house. Still in the concentration camp, she sees a patrol of Nazis coming near. They target three men and end up hanging them. This was because “one man didn’t tip his hat when a Nazi officer passed. One tried to smuggle a letter to his wife. And one stole a potato.” Anneke is upset and deeply saddened by this unjust display. No matter how much Anneke tries to weed out the hardships of the camp, they always come back to remind her. This is one of the ways that the author portrays the claustrophobic feeling of the Holocaust - the feeling that there is no escape.

      Anneke also meets and has an emotional encounter with a boy named Franticek Halop. Although he has had many partners and a girlfriend, Franticek dismisses his actions as "animal things" (78). He is "not proud of it, but a person...well, a person has to survive. And in a place like this, sometimes a person has to take what he can get. Just to feel alive" (79). He declares his love to Anneke as real and true, and they share a passionate first kiss. He gives her his leather neckpiece to remember him by. Only then after does Anneke find out that Franticek is to be transported into another camp the very next day. They may never meet again.
      Because of this, Anneke shows substantial character development. Being young and inexperienced, she is confused by her feelings of attraction towards Franticek. She gets feelings of discovery in the heat of the moment. An experience with a first love at a young age is an unforgettable moment, but she tries not to think about it too much, as there is nothing she can do to advance or change anything at this point in time.
      Hannelore, Anneke's best friend, also finds and old skirt for sale in one of the shops. She is very excited about it, and consoles with Anneke about whether or not to buy it. She ends up purchasing it, but Anneke feels sad about it because she knows that the Nazis shouldn't have even taken away their belongings in the first place.