Joan's picks: Dice and My Friend Anne Frank

Dice by Claire Bayliss. This is the (fictional) story of a sexual assault case which is, I believe, loosely based on the Roastbusters fiasco (and coincidentally soon after I read it the appalling Mama Hooch story from Christchurch was all over the media). Four teenage boys invent a sex game based on the toss of a die and the police charge them with multiple sexual offences against three teenage girls. It’s told from the perspective of the jury - twelve individuals from very different backgrounds and opinions who have to figure out whether consent was given or these were criminal acts. Really cleverly done, and a good insight into how these decisions are worked through and made. As I think you know Claire has a lot of background working with juries which is put to very good use in this book. 

My Friend Anne Frank by Hannah Pick-Goslar. Hannah and Anne were childhood friends - they met in Amsterdam after both families had escaped Germany during the war, and were besties from a young age. But then of course Anne and her family disappeared. It wasn’t until Hannah reached her darkest point, when she and her family were incarcerated in Bergen-Belsen - that she briefly saw Anne again. This is a deeply moving story told by a woman in her 90’s who sadly died last year and didn’t see her book published. Amazing that she lived with the memory of Anne Frank all those years. The photo on the cover of the two of them is beautiful. 

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