The House on the Canal: The Story of the House that Hid Anne Frank

A house reveals the story of its inhabitants, including Anne Frankand honors four centuries of historyin a moving and exquisitely illustrated picture book from the creators ofThe House by the Lake.

In the middle of Amsterdam is a house on a canal with a green door. Over four hundred years, it has quietly witnessed love, desperation, and historic change. Sometimes the narrow house was splendidly decorated, humming with life and love; other times, it stood empty, in near ruins. Sometimes the green door was open and inviting; other times, it was closed against cold and plague or to conceal the victims of wartime persecution. The houses last occupant, a young girl with a sweet smile, would famously document her time there. In her diary, Anne Frank wrote of the old house on the canal, and today people come from far and wide to visit what stands as a universal symbol of hope and resilience. Thomas Hardings lyrical text and concise back matter reveal history through the changing face and fortunes of a remarkable structure. Impeccably researched, Britta Teckentrups dreamy mixed-media collages, including a map and archival imagery, perfectly echo the layered narrative and capture the ethereal nature of time and circumstance.