It Was Miep Who Saved Anne Frank's Diary
20 seconds of courage again and again
On 4 August 1944, Anne Frank, her family, and four others hiding in the secret annex were discovered and arrested.
For two years, Miep Gies and a few trusted helpers kept the Frank family and others alive behind the secret bookcase. The story is brilliantly told in a series called A Small Light on Disney+ and National Geographic. We know Anne’s story, and yet Miep’s courage and pluck coupled with the suspense and stress of hiding from the Nazi’s will have you sweating and either breathing a sigh of relief or silently screaming no no no.
I highly recommend the show, not only because it’s immensely important and true, but to also watch the unfolding of story. As a writer, these are the types of stories we must continue to create (I’m desperately hoping the writer’s strike gets resolved soon, with fair pay and better working conditions for the writers!)
What made this series so compelling:
Point of View
Have you ever heard of Miep? (pronounced Meep) Before, I vaguely knew her name. Now I’ll never forget her. It’s fascinating to consider point of view as we tell a story. Who’s perspective and lens are you telling the story from? It will change everything.
Likability
Our hero must have some redeeming factor that makes us care and want to follow them. In Miep’s case, we are drawn to her funny, plucky, outspoken personality. And then we LOVE her because of the courageous choices she makes.
The Stakes
Getting arrested and killed by the Nazis is the obvious stakes here, but every hero of every story must have something to lose or why should we care? She must exhibit 20 seconds of courage again and again and again.
An Ordinary woman in Extraordinary Times
Miep is a young secretary, an ordinary person. So is our hero. She will need to find the courage to confront the bully on the playground - or the morality police (literally). We are still living in extraordinary times! Yesterday, NPR reported that Iran is bringing back the morality police after months of reprieve after mass protest and rioting when police killed a young woman in Iranian custody for not covering her hair as the cleric declared. My blood boils. Does our hero have the courage to protest by keeping her hair uncovered (would I? when I’m afraid of pain, death and retaliation…)
Know Your Why
It has to matter or nobody cares. It was so devastating to watch Miep’s despair. The allies were so close. The war was almost over! What had it all been for if Anne, Margot, Peter, Mr. and Mrs. Van Pels, and Fritz Pfeffer didn’t come back? Miep cries it’s like her existence is nothing if they didn’t survive the death camps…they didn’t. BUT SHE SAVED THE DIARY. And that diary changed the world - and that’s because of Miep.
I marveled and wondered why I didn’t know much about Miep before now. And then I thought - because someone needed to write this story.
Have you watched A Small Light? The show’s title comes from a quote by Miep, who dedicated the rest of her life to speaking about her experience:
But even an ordinary secretary or a housewife or a teenager can, within their own small ways, turn on a small light in a dark room. -Miep Gies
See the ordinary people doing extraordinary things. I hope you will write about them.
Amy ❣️
Book banning and censorship are on the rise. I am empathetic to parents who want to protect their children from books they’re not ready for, but the overreach has been alarming. Former president Barack Obama addressed the growing trend of book banning in a letter to librarians around the country:
“The world is watching. If America — a nation built on freedom of expression — allows certain voices and ideas to be silenced, why should other countries go out of their way to protect them? Ironically, it is Christian and other religious texts — the sacred texts that some calling for book bannings in this country claim to want to defend — that have often been the first target of censorship and book banning efforts in authoritarian countries.”
Utah Friends…I’m On the Way!
I’ll be visiting one of my favorite bookstores, King’s English Bookshop, in Salt Lake City on August 12th, at 4pm. We will have a short Q&A followed by a book signing. PLEASE stop by!
Good News and Story Links:
ICYMI: The McNifficents has been out for nearly a month!
Helpful: Please leave a review at Goodreads or Amazon - it helps TREMENDOUSLY
Miep’s Words: An Interview with Miep
New York Times: An Ordinary Woman Resists the Nazis
Thank you. Now I’m very interested