"Meeting" Anne Frank: An Anthology, edited by Tim Whittome, compiles a diverse range of voices exploring the life, legacy, and enduring impact of Anne Frank through essays, reflections, interviews, and historical context. The collection begins with background on Anne’s early years, her family, and the events leading to their hiding in Amsterdam during the German occupation. It traces her journey from childhood to the Secret Annex, and then through arrest, deportation, and the tragic final chapters of her life. The anthology then goes beyond biography, analyzing the different versions of Anne’s diary and how her words have been preserved and interpreted over time. Contributors from various countries share personal stories, describing how they encountered Anne through reading, travel, performances, or study. The book also features interviews with those who have portrayed Anne on stage, along with reflections from visitors to key locations in Amsterdam.

The book is written in a style that combines historical detail with personal reflections, creating a rhythm that alternates between informative passages and heartfelt responses. The pacing allows each contributor to share their perspective while maintaining a cohesive structure that guides the reader from context to interpretation. The essays are engaging and introspective, and the accompanying photographs, interviews, and firsthand accounts add variety and keep the book dynamic. Readers who enjoy history, memoirs, and literary reflections will find "Meeting Anne Frank" an excellent read. Those interested in how stories continue to influence our understanding over time will appreciate Tim Whittome’s efforts. The book may also appeal to educators, students, and anyone interested in narratives of memory and identity that offer knowledge and reflection.

“Meeting” Anne Frank: An Anthology by Tim Whittome is a compilation of history, photography, and discussions by dozens of people who have been touched in their own way by Anne Frank and her story. Among them, Yvonne Leslie remembers a paperback of The Diary of a Young Girl in an Oregon school library during 1969, and later reading Anne Frank’s diary while living in rural Arizona after finding Ernst Schnabel’s book about her. Noreen Simpson recalls an English teacher in Belfast mentioning Anne Frank during her teenage years, which led her to read the diary and later travel to Amsterdam, where she visited the Anne Frank House and the Frank family apartment at Merwedeplein. Anne Talvaz describes learning about the war through a television documentary in France, after which she read Anne's diary, studied Dutch, and eventually visited the Anne Frank House during a family trip.

Tim Whittome’s "Meeting" Anne Frank gathers a wide range of historical material and contributions connected to Anne Frank, giving readers loads of details that expand our understanding of her life and the preservation of her legacy. I love that Whittome shows Frank's impact on ordinary people who are so attuned to her that they “meet” her in their own unique ways. Every essay is conversational, the standout to me being an interview with Miranda Antoinette Troutt, who portrayed Anne Frank in a Children’s Theatre production, with preparation for the role that included meeting with a Holocaust survivor who knew Margot Frank during childhood. The photography strengthens the stories. Ellen Roberts contributes a photograph of the memorial dedicated to Anne Frank and Margot Frank at Bergen Belsen, and Ryan Cooper appears in a photograph standing with Otto Frank while holding the original manuscripts of Anne Frank’s diary. Overall, this is a unique and fascinating compilation. Very highly recommended.