WHEN WE FLEW AWAY

“Are you happy,” Edith whispered to Anne. She usually responded right away, but now it took a while before she could answer.
“I will be,” she answered in a soft voice. “I’ll be so happy you won’t believe it.”
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When We Flew Away is a deeply moving, quietly powerful novel reimagining Anne Frank’s early years before she and her family went into hiding. As the Nazis close in on Amsterdam, Anne watches their comfortable life shift into an unrecognizable existence of fear. This book is a window into the ways Anne was both ordinary - with sibling rivalries and friendship dynamics - and also very special, already planning how she will establish her legacy in the pages of her diary. With ominous, fairytale-inspired imagery of wicked beasts and evil goblins, we are drawn into Anne’s spiraling world of uncertainty. But still, brimming with stories, wishes and vitality, Anne is simply a girl - she is everyone.
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A few days ago, I had the profoundly emotional experience of visiting the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. Reading this novel made me feel as though Anne was truly known to me. Her longing to be special, yearning for a future that would never come, was brought into sharp relief standing in the annex where she and her family hid for two years. Anne Frank was sensitive, creative, tempestuous, introspective - she was a regular teenager who dreamed of a big, beautiful life. Anne Frank’s story is like a song we have listened to so often that maybe we no longer hear it at all. This book gives me hope that her words will be rediscovered by the next generation, and readers of every age.
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Dutch baby pancakes are a must-try in the Netherlands, and they are actually so easy and delicious. They come out looking like popovers, and then they deflate into this little bowl that you can fill with anything, savory or sweet. I’m going to try apples next time for an autumn flavor.
You can find this recipe here !