Comments for Written from the Knee
The rules for the contest are as follows:
Comment #1: Wednesday, December, 17, 2008 at 15:31:06
I know this is trite and repeated over and over, but my favorite book in diary form is The Diary of Anne Frank, by Anne Frank. I've read other books in diary form, good books, but none have lived in my memory for over 40 years.
I first read Anne Frank when I was in 4th grade, 9 years old. I really had only a vague notion of the war, knew nothing of the Holocaust, but the book captured me. As I got older and learned more of that era, I re-read the book, and my new knowledge base made it seem like an entirely new book. I have no idea how many times I've read it, but each time, I learn something new.
Comment #2: Wednesday, December, 17, 2008 at 15:37:45
Tracey Byram
Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
This is the diary of a teen girl on drugs and her difficulties in life. They also did a tv movie based on the book that was very good.
Comment #3: Wednesday, December, 17, 2008 at 19:18:48
anne berger
The Red Leather Diary by Lily Koppel. This book chronicles the life of Florence Wolfson from 1929-1934. I found it fascinating and intriguing because the era interests me greatly. It vividly portrays her life, the times and is vivid and unique.
Comment #4: Wednesday, December, 17, 2008 at 20:13:26
Darby
My favorite book in diary form is "Are you there God? It's me Margaret" by Judy Blume. What is it about.... a young girl going through adolesents (sp?) and asking God her questions about life....loved this book!!
Thanks
Darby
Comment #5: Wednesday, December, 17, 2008 at 21:21:06
As I am now reading books about WWII, I am interested to read this.
And apart from Anne Frank's Diary, I immensely enjoyed Dear John by Norma Betz. It is told in a letter form.
Comment #6: Wednesday, December, 17, 2008 at 22:23:47
Definitely one of the greatest literature works: Dracula by Bram Stoker. The book follows Dracula and other characters from his castle to England and chronicles his relationships and rivalries.
I also blogged about the contest here.
Comment #7: Thursday, December, 18, 2008 at 08:09:54
Judith Rachmani
The Diary of Anne Frank, which was written by a teenager, Anne Frank, while she was hiding from the Nazis with her family and four others in the upper rooms of her father's office building in Amsterdam.
Comment #8: Thursday, December, 18, 2008 at 09:03:41
My first thought was Diary of a Young Girl, by Anne Frank, for many of the same reasons as TexasWren. But upon reflection, I'm going to pick The Basketball Diaries, by Jim Carroll. Carroll's records his descent into the grip of a heroin addiction as a teenager in Manhattan. It is perhaps the most harrowing account of what such an addiction can do to a person I've ever read.
Comment #9: Thursday, December, 18, 2008 at 11:54:36
Amber G
The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot - I know, not the most intellectual choice, but it is so fun and witty! It is definitely fiction and tells Mia's story of discovering that she is a princess living in Manhattan. I am sure you have probably heard of the movie adaptataion with Anne Hathaway and Julie Andrews. Anyhow, I would love to win this diary because I am a history buff, though I know my choice of favorite diary does not show that :P
Comment #10: Thursday, December, 18, 2008 at 14:48:37
Rita M
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
This one is a tearjerker! Flowers for Algernon traces the mental & emotional development of Charlie Gordon, a retarded young man who becomes the first human test-subject for an ambitious brain experiment. He tells his own story throught a series of "Progris Riports."
Comment #11: Thursday, December, 18, 2008 at 15:32:54
Pat
The Diary Of Anne Frank is my favorite. As you know, Ann Frank was a Jew who hid with her family in fear of Nazi persecution. The young girl died in a concentration camp.
Comment #12: Thursday, December, 18, 2008 at 18:20:36
christopher harner
bridget jones's diary by helen fielding, it's the most immediate choice, but quite a fun and funny book
Comment #13: Thursday, December, 18, 2008 at 22:51:44
For the serious - Diary of Anne Frank - For the lighthearted - Bridget Jones's Diary!
Thanks for the giveaway - I am just digging into some WWII books and this one would fit right in!
Comment #14: Friday, December, 19, 2008 at 10:30:31
Go Ask Alice by Anonymous is my favorite. It is about a young girl on drugs-so sad!
Comment #15: Friday, December, 19, 2008 at 14:40:36
I love these types of books and it's hard to name a favourite but one I read recently and is a new favourite is
"Resistance: A Woman's Journal of Struggle and Defiance in Occupied France" by Agnes Humbert
It is a woman's diary of her participation in the beginning of the French Resistance and then of her stays as a prisoner in various German internment camps for French and other political prisoners.
Comment #16: Friday, December, 19, 2008 at 21:35:59
mindy
the diary of anne frank it always brings tears to my eyes and shows the good in people as well as the bad
Comment #17: Monday, December, 29, 2008 at 09:46:02
M.A.
My favorite non-fiction "diary form" book is The Diary of Anne Frank which was written by youthful Anne Frank during the time she (with her family and friends) was hidden from Nazis in the attic of an office building in Amsterdam.
Comment #18: Monday, December, 29, 2008 at 08:22:47
sito
Bridget Jones' Diary by Helen Fielding is a favorite book of mine. I laughed out loud at some of the entries. She's a single British woman who wants to lose weight and fall in love. Book was much better than the film, although liked that, too.
Comment #19: Tuesday, December, 30, 2008 at 01:13:01
Carol Bertolo
Diary of a Mad Housewife: A Novel by Sue Kaufman
Diary of a Mad Housewife is a classic of women's fiction that gave a wry voice to the nascent feminist stirrings of the 1960s and helped incite a revolution in the consciousness of a generation. After many years, this best-selling novel of Manhattan ennui is finally back in print.
When Bettina Balser begins to suspect that she is going mad, she starts a secret diary as a form of therapy and escape. Her fears pour onto the page: "Elevators, subways, bridges, tunnels, high places, low places, tightly enclosed spaces, boats, cars, planes, trains, crowds...." Through her observations of herself and those around her, Bettina seeks meaning in her exceedingly dreary life. Her frank examinations lead to many changes, including an extramarital fling, and her voice touches a timeless nerve, resonating on many levels? from the ever-evolving feminist consciousness to the gnawing existential search that is universal.
Diary of a Mad Housewife's humor and insight are as alive and pertinent today as they were yesterday, and will charm and disarm men and women of any generation.
Comment #20: Thursday, December, 25, 2008 at 01:00:31
Darby Lohrding
Are you there God? It's Me Margaret by Judy Blume. Is the only book I can think of that is written in diary form. I really enjoyed this book when I read it as a teen...it was like a "hush hush" book that we passed around, about a young girl living a much more sexually addicitive life than I was at the time. She was also experimenting with drugs which was totally unheard of by me at the age I read this book. Like I said this book made quite an impression and I'd love to reread it to see just how sheltered my teen yrs actually were. The book you are offering, I know that both my husband and I would enjoy.
Thanks for the opportunity!
Darby
Comment #21: Monday, December, 29, 2008 at 08:22:47
sito
Bridget Jones' Diary by Helen Fielding is a favorite book of mine. I laughed out loud at some of the entries. She's a single British woman who wants to lose weight and fall in love. Book was much better than the film, although liked that, too.
Comment #22: Monday, December, 29, 2008 at 09:46:02
M.A.
My favorite non-fiction "diary form" book is The Diary of Anne Frank which was written by youthful Anne Frank during the time she (with her family and friends) was hidden from Nazis in the attic of an office building in Amsterdam.
Comment #23: Tuesday, December, 30, 2008 at 01:13:01
Carol Bertolo
Diary of a Mad Housewife: A Novel by Sue Kaufman
Diary of a Mad Housewife is a classic of womens fiction that gave a wry voice to the nascent feminist stirrings of the 1960s and helped incite a revolution in the consciousness of a generation. After many years, this best-selling novel of Manhattan ennui is finally back in print.
When Bettina Balser begins to suspect that she is going mad, she starts a secret diary as a form of therapy and escape. Her fears pour onto the page: "Elevators, subways, bridges, tunnels, high places, low places, tightly enclosed spaces, boats, cars, planes, trains, crowds...." Through her observations of herself and those around her, Bettina seeks meaning in her exceedingly dreary life. Her frank examinations lead to many changes, including an extramarital fling, and her voice touches a timeless nerve, resonating on many levels from the ever-evolving feminist consciousness to the gnawing existential search that is universal.
Diary of a Mad Housewifes humor and insight are as alive and pertinent today as they were yesterday, and will charm and disarm men and women of any generation.
Comment #24: Wednesday, January, 14, 2009 at 02:14:43
Christina
I like "A Season In The Life Of Emmanuel" written by Marie-Claire Blais, a French-Canadian author, about the life of a 13-yr.-old boy.
Comment #25: Friday, January, 16, 2009 at 23:30:37
dorothy l
Go Ask Alice by anonymous is about a young girl and the drug use that leads to her death
Comment #26: Saturday, January, 17, 2009 at 11:45:30
Amy Tucker
The Diary of Anne Frank, by Anne Frank. This book is about Anne's experience during the holoucaust. One of the very first books I read as a young girl -- and still a favourite because it is so personal.
Comment #27: Saturday, January, 17, 2009 at 14:09:53
Doreen
The princess diaries by Meg Cobat. I love and book and movie. It is a deep story for me. She so wants to just be herself while being pulled to be someone else. I would love to be an hier but I am not in her shoes. Great book.
Comment #28: Saturday, January, 17, 2009 at 16:26:33
Kim Miller
I have to agree on the Anne Frank by Anne Frank. Imagine being a jew in that time and a teenager? To hide and be afraid to breathe for fear of being discovered.
Comment #29: Sunday, January, 18, 2009 at 01:15:16
Pamela White
Trash by Sharon Darrow tells of children who have to go from one family to another.
Comment #30: Sunday, January, 18, 2009 at 03:46:46
Crystal
Bram Stoker's Dracula
The classic vampire story that basically set the standard for horror books in my opinion.
Also, can't forget the Diary of Anne Frank. I remember reading that book when I was about 12, and I was glued to it.
Comment #31: Sunday, January, 18, 2009 at 08:53:51
My favorite book in this form is Les Liason Dangerouse! It is by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos and is the book Dangerous Liason was based on, but as always, the book is much better!
Comment #32: Sunday, January, 18, 2009 at 11:48:06
Candie L
Diary of a Young Girl Anne Franke- autobiography. It talks about her living in hiding during WWII and what the family had to do to survive
Comment #33: Sunday, January, 18, 2009 at 11:57:08
ELSIE
My favorite diary formatted book is Within Reach, Mark Pfetzer/Jack Galvin. This book is NOT just another story about a climb that went wrong. It is about the beginning of the author's climbs to the ultimate climb. It is a quick read that I had difficulty putting down.
Comment #34: Sunday, January, 18, 2009 at 16:23:18
Francine A
The Diary of Anne Frank by Anne frank
I read this when I was young but it is a powerful story about a young girl who was hiding from the nazis and is about the holocaust.
Comment #35: Sunday, January, 18, 2009 at 18:16:23
Denise
The Diary of Anne Frank by Anne Frank and written about hiding from the Nazis.
Comment #36: Sunday, January, 18, 2009 at 19:47:47
Susanne Troop
The Diary of Anne Frank, by Anne Frank. This book is about Anne's experience growing up during the holoucaust. I saw the play of this last year and the store stills brings me to tears.
Comment #37: Sunday, January, 18, 2009 at 21:52:43
Amy H.
As an 8th grade English teacher, each year I teach two diaries that have a life changing impact on my students:
The Diary of Anne Frank by Anne Frank is the story of a young teen in hiding in Amsterdam. The diary ends abruptly as her family and the van Daan family are captured in the Annex and then taken by the Germans.
Night by Elie Wiesel is not a diary but a memoir that takes my students into the concentration camps with a 15 year old Polish boy who amazingly survives but has to live with the loss of family, faith, and innocence.
Comment #38: Sunday, January, 18, 2009 at 23:51:50
Kristen Hendricks
My favorite book written in diary form is Bridet Jones's Diary by Helen Fielding. I like it so much because I can totally relate to Bridget. This is a great giveaway. Thanks.
Comment #39: Monday, January, 19, 2009 at 01:31:39
Donna Kozar
The Diary of Anne Frank, which was written by a teenager, Anne Frank, while she was hiding from the Nazis with her family and four others in the upper rooms of her father's office building in Amsterdam.