The Boy Who Loved Anne Frank: A Novel

Ellen Feldman

Dec 2012 · Pan Macmillan

About this ebook

On February 16,1944, Anne Frank recorded in her diary that Peter, whom she at first disliked but eventually came to love, had confided to her that if he got out alive, he would reinvent himself entirely. This is the story of what might have happened if the boy in hiding survived to become a man.

Peter arrives in America, the land of self-creation; he flourishes in business, marries, and raises a family. He thrives in the present, plans for the future, and has no past. But when The Diary of a Young Girl is published to worldwide acclaim and gives rise to bitter infighting, he realises the cost of forgetting.

Based on extensive research of Peter van Pels and the strange and disturbing life Anne Frank's diary took on after her death, this is a novel about the memory of death, the death of memory, and the inescapability of the past.

‘This is a brave novel in the strongest sense of the word, carefully treading mined terrain to thought-provoking and memorable effect’ Observer

‘In this thoughtful novel, Feldman imagines how Peter's life might have turned out had he survived the war. It's an account of his struggle to deal with the past in the face of public obsession with the girl he loved. Fascinating and moving’ New Woman

‘An inventive postscript to the famous story’ Financial Times

On February 16,1944, Anne Frank recorded in her diary that Peter, whom she at first disliked but eventually came to love, had confided in her that if he got out alive, he would reinvent himself entirely. This is the story of what might have happened if the boy in hiding survived to become a man.

Peter arrives in America, the land of self-creation; he flourishes in business, marries, and raises a family. He thrives in the present, plans for the future, and has no past. But when The Diary of a Young Girl is published to worldwide acclaim and gives rise to bitter infighting, he realises the cost of forgetting.

Based on extensive research of Peter van Pels and the strange and disturbing life Anne Frank's diary took on after her death, this is a novel about the memory of death, the death of memory, and the inescapability of the past.

About the author

Ellen Feldman lives in New York with her husband and works as a journalist and critic.

Ellen Feldman is the author of Lucy and has written about American history in American Heritage and the New York Times . She lives in New York with her husband.