ABSTRACT
Anne Frank: the Diary of a Young Girl is a logical starting point for a project on young adult Holocaust literature, because it is the most often taught and referenced text in the canon. It has a pervasive and lasting inuence on American culture and one that is signicant to understanding educational policies regarding teaching tolerance, compassion, and Holocaust history. Neutral Milk Hotel’s lyrics, which open this chapter, obliquely reference Frank, particularly her death after her diary’s premature end. Singer Jeff Mangum reminds us of the Frank family’s decimation, as her sister and mother are buried with those 500 families. Yet he expresses a desire to save her alone in “some sort of time machine.” Frank’s Diary and popular culture presence are an entry point to the experiences of those other 500 murdered families, yet her compelling voice draws desires to save “her” specically. This passionate identication with Frank is at the heart of this chapter: Anne the loved, beloved, and eternal point of optimism.
