The Betrayal of Anne Frank

A Cold Case Investigation

By: Rosemary Sullivan

Narrated by: Julia Whelan

Length: 10 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

Less a mystery unsolved than a secret well kept...

Using new technology, recently discovered documents and sophisticated investigative techniques, an international team—led by an obsessed retired FBI agent—has finally solved the mystery that has haunted generations since World War II: Who betrayed Anne Frank and her family? And why?

Over thirty million people have read The Diary of a Young Girl, the journal teen-aged Anne Frank kept while living in an attic with her family and four other people in Amsterdam during World War II, until the Nazis arrested them and sent them to a concentration camp. But despite the many works—journalism, books, plays and novels—devoted to Anne’s story, none has ever conclusively explained how these eight people managed to live in hiding undetected for over two years—and who or what finally brought the Nazis to their door.

With painstaking care, retired FBI agent Vincent Pankoke and a team of indefatigable investigators pored over tens of thousands of pages of documents—some never before seen—and interviewed scores of descendants of people familiar with the Franks. Utilizing methods developed by the FBI, the Cold Case Team painstakingly pieced together the months leading to the infamous arrest—and came to a shocking conclusion.

The Betrayal of Anne Frank: A Cold Case Investigation is the riveting story of their mission. Rosemary Sullivan introduces us to the investigators, explains the behavior of both the captives and their captors and profiles a group of suspects. All the while, she vividly brings to life wartime Amsterdam: a place where no matter how wealthy, educated, or careful you were, you never knew whom you could trust.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2021 Rosemary Sullivan (P)2021 HarperCollins Publishers

I loved this!

It was well read, well thought out and planned; to give you a beginning to end idea of what had previously been found and what was new.

Fascinating and informative

I love learning about WWII history and this is a great resource. Some of the storylines are difficult to follow on audiobook because there are so many unfamiliar names. The performance was great and the story was told artfully and well. Would definitely recommend!

Learn betrayal methods to not repeat

This was an in-depth analysis of a dark history that is very relevant to today’s rising nationalism. People bought in to the Nazi “othering” and marginalizing many groups. They sold out their friends and neighbors to protect themselves. Then there was no one to save them in the end. It made me reflect on what would I do to protect my family AND what will I do to help current marginalized groups.

Heart breaking conclusion

The investigative leads brought about a very likely, but painful, conclusion. One now realizes that the holocaust cost even more than millions of lives.

History + Cold Case

Super interesting. My favorite part was the historical beginning. So much I either didn’t know or forgot. The investigation was detailed and methodical. Well worth the read. The narrator was phenomenal at pronouncing the various German and Dutch names and words. Seamless.

The Common Denominator of the Human Condition

A fair and reasonable theory about how Anne Frank was betrayed as a statistic in the equation of human survival. In a world which was predicated on identity, discrimination, and survival, both the captured and threatened had painful choices to make for their common goal - survival as a human being regardless of tribe or faith. Knowing who was the perpetrator, the enabler, and victim does not help dispel the uncomfortable truth - that humanity strives for survival alone above all else.

Rosemary Sullivan does the ultimate compliment to the human condition with this exploratory work on the possibilities of seeing humanity as one with common motives, common virtues, and common vices. Leverage to survive at all costs when all hope has dissipated is the last step before the brink.

Interesting

If you are familiar with the Anne Frank story and enjoy history, this investigative book will be very interesting to listen to.

A very interesting summary of how a cold case investigation is performed

‘The Betrayal of Anne Frank’ is more interesting on finding out how a cold case investigation is performed than on the actual results, which are non conclusive. I found the book as a very interesting, alternative way to know more about Anne Frank’s and the nazis’ atrocities in the Netherlands. Clearly, undertaking a project to discover a betrayal that took place in 1944 is no small task and the book is very explicit about the challenges faced by the investigators. I understand that there’s a documentary in the making and look forward to catching that as well!

A must read!

Increidble behind the scenes details of a heartbroken father who lost his beloved family! We are so blessed to learn from Anne’s story. It was very interesting to see how the team came to the conclusion that they did. I learned so much! The reader was freat with pronunciation of foreign words.

An Extraordinary Saga

A fascinating account of a team of researchers trying to discover who told the Nazis about the hiding place of Anne Frank and the families.
But as others have commented. this book is about so much more. We are taken on a journey through wartime Netherlands and all the nightmares and insanity that reigned during the Nazi occupation.
So many characters emerge that I totally lost track, but I didn't care because the whole story and the individuals were so riveting.
So not only learning about the lives and deaths of the people, but the overall message is that this shouldn't happen again but could happen again. It is so chilling and there is so much comparable to circumstances today that I hope the message is out there.
The most frightening thing I learned was the insidious nature of fascism and the truly warped thinking of regular citizens that leads to corruption.
Julia Whelan was masterful with her narration.