Hall High School Visiting Author

Rebecca Frankel,

Hall Alum

Rebecca Frankel is the author of the New York Times best-selling book War Dogs: Tales of Canine Heroism, History, and Love, and Into the Forest: A Holocaust Story of Survival, Triumph, and Love.

Throughout the day on Friday March 25th,

17 classes (roughly 350 students) came to the library to hear Rebecca Frankel speak. She discussed her path to becoming a journalist as well as her two published novels. She also spoke on her time as a student at Hall.

“A lot of time, effort, energy, and research goes into writing a book that accurately reflects historical and nonfiction events. Also, one can't just write whatever they want in a historical account. Even if the author wanted to write about something, sometimes they couldn't include certain details because there wasn't enough supporting evidence to confirm them.”

“The biggest takeaway I have from Ms. Frankel's presentation is how much emotional labor goes into writing, especially about topics as heavy as the Holocaust and war. It's not just about how much time it takes to research, write and publish. It's about bearing the emotional toll of hearing difficult stories, then figuring out how to share them in a respectful, understanding, and above all else, kind way.”

“I thought it was cool that she directly went to the army bases to interview the soldiers about military dogs. I also found it cool that she trained with them.”

“The presentation made me think more about how actual people really experienced events that we hear and read about all the time.”

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“I learned how people survived in the woods, and what the recovery process was like for holocaust survivors.”

“I think it was really cool that someone like us, that came from the same community as us, was able to go discover and write all about this. I think it was really cool that they are an Hall Alumni.”

“It was interesting that she started by writing for journals and then use those skills to write these books on personal accounts. I also really liked that she chose book topics that really mattered to her, like how she ended up adopting one of the dogs, and how she grew up with that rabbi.”