Scan barcode
doesitcomeinabook's review against another edition
Uma leitura tocante, principalmente por ter sido cortada antes do tempo. É importante notar, como com qualquer outro livro deste género, que um diário não é escrito para ser lido por outras pessoas. Por isso mesmo, pessoalmente gostaria de ter as notas em continuação com o texto em vez de no fim da obra.
evia_booklover's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
I do not know how to rate books that are first hand accounts of the Holocaust. Apparently, I do not know what to say about these books, either. They always leave me utterly heartbroken and speechless. However, one day, I will return and post more of my thoughts because I annotated this book...
booktravler's review against another edition
4.0
The life of Renia through her own thoughts about life in Poland leading up to and during the occupation. In this diary, you get an insight of everyday life and thoughts of a schoolgirl going about her life. Renia also wrote some amazing poems about love, family and teenage life.
lesserjoke's review against another edition
3.0
I have mixed feelings about this diary of a Polish Jew who was killed by the Nazis at age 18. The obvious comparison point is fellow Holocaust victim Anne Frank, but Frank was a consummate observer who hoped to someday publish her record of events, whereas Renia Spiegel is clear at several points that she is writing only for herself. She also makes scant -- albeit always arresting -- mention of the turbulence of the times around her, being instead more concerned with her teenage poetry and her feelings for a local boy. There's a certain uncomfortable voyeurism in reading these passages, and although putting a(nother) human face on a tragedy can be beneficial, I don't know that the payoff is worth the intrusion.
Perhaps more interesting are the Preface, Afterword, and Notes written by Renia's younger sister, now in her late 80s, who took the diary out of storage and had it published in the original Polish in 2016 and an English translation in 2019. These sections provide important historical context and constitute an invaluable aspect of the overall text. But I'm just not convinced that a story so personal and so trivial really needed to be shared with the world.
Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter
Perhaps more interesting are the Preface, Afterword, and Notes written by Renia's younger sister, now in her late 80s, who took the diary out of storage and had it published in the original Polish in 2016 and an English translation in 2019. These sections provide important historical context and constitute an invaluable aspect of the overall text. But I'm just not convinced that a story so personal and so trivial really needed to be shared with the world.
Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter
booktravler101's review against another edition
4.0
The life of Renia through her own thoughts about life in Poland leading up to and during the occupation. In this diary, you get an insight of everyday life and thoughts of a schoolgirl going about her life. Renia also wrote some amazing poems about love, family and teenage life.
elizc3's review against another edition
4.0
~~An advanced copy of this book was provided by St. Martin's Press and Goodreads with no promise of a review~~
I believe my review will reiterate the feelings of most of the people who have had the pleasure of reading this book. Renia Spiegel‘s diary takes place over four years in 1939-1942 - which makes it extremely difficult to review. This is someone's immediate recollection of their own life events. I find it to be unnecessary to try to analyze this book from a pure writing perspective.
Renia is a teen girl so a lot of her musings are focused on crushes, friendship issues, and her day to day life. Which quite frankly gets a bit tedious at times but it's a teen girl's diary. I think this gives you a better picture of Renia as a whole and that's what this book is primarily intended to do: give you Renia's account of the last 4 years of her life. I am no longer a teen girl but I do believe that most teenagers/middle/high schoolers would be able to related to this content making it easier to read and absorb as opposed to other WWII non-fiction accounts.
Her poetry is amazing and she paints beautiful images with her words; her ability to be introspective is one that most don't expect from a teenager which comes as a pleasant burst of beauty within her day to day observations. She was an extremely talented and well rounded young woman whose pain was clearly depicted when she wrote about missing her mother and later about trying to protect her sister while fleeing with her grandparents. Reina uses her diary to give her some semblance of normalcy in her ever changing traumatic situation. This is an amazing feat of strength in my opinion. To strive and work to give yourself something to hold on to when everything is falling apart.
The afterword is equally as heartbreaking if not more with the additional traumatic details provided by Elizabeth. Elizabeth's details provided some much needed perspective and information that was missed in the diary. I think it could be a good resource to read prior to the diary especially if the intention is to use this book in a classroom/book club setting.
I believe my review will reiterate the feelings of most of the people who have had the pleasure of reading this book. Renia Spiegel‘s diary takes place over four years in 1939-1942 - which makes it extremely difficult to review. This is someone's immediate recollection of their own life events. I find it to be unnecessary to try to analyze this book from a pure writing perspective.
Renia is a teen girl so a lot of her musings are focused on crushes, friendship issues, and her day to day life. Which quite frankly gets a bit tedious at times but it's a teen girl's diary. I think this gives you a better picture of Renia as a whole and that's what this book is primarily intended to do: give you Renia's account of the last 4 years of her life. I am no longer a teen girl but I do believe that most teenagers/middle/high schoolers would be able to related to this content making it easier to read and absorb as opposed to other WWII non-fiction accounts.
Her poetry is amazing and she paints beautiful images with her words; her ability to be introspective is one that most don't expect from a teenager which comes as a pleasant burst of beauty within her day to day observations. She was an extremely talented and well rounded young woman whose pain was clearly depicted when she wrote about missing her mother and later about trying to protect her sister while fleeing with her grandparents. Reina uses her diary to give her some semblance of normalcy in her ever changing traumatic situation. This is an amazing feat of strength in my opinion. To strive and work to give yourself something to hold on to when everything is falling apart.
The afterword is equally as heartbreaking if not more with the additional traumatic details provided by Elizabeth. Elizabeth's details provided some much needed perspective and information that was missed in the diary. I think it could be a good resource to read prior to the diary especially if the intention is to use this book in a classroom/book club setting.
pam2375's review against another edition
5.0
This is a heart wrenching journal of what life was like for Renia and countless others during the WWII Holocaust. To say that "I loved this book" seems wrong somehow.
My thanks to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for this advanced readers copy. Release date for this one is scheduled for September 2019.
My thanks to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for this advanced readers copy. Release date for this one is scheduled for September 2019.
txcoach25's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
4.5
Life of a normal teenage girl during an unimaginable time. This diary covers the everyday life of a typical teenage girl who was thrown into chaos and horror as the "Final Solution" came to fruition. Throughout this diary, Renia displayed her ability to create beautiful poems all while writing about life, school, a first and deep love which can come across as being toxic, and the yearning to be with the person she loved most in the world - her mother. She, indeed, was loved so very much.
emsully57's review against another edition
4.0
The story of how Renia's collective diaries survived is incredible in itself!