it was first published as "het achterhuis. dagboekbrieven 12 juni 1942 – 1 augustus 1944" ("the annex: diary notes from 12 june 1942 – 1 august 1944") by contact publishing in amsterdam in 1947. after it was translated into english as "anne frank: the diary of a young girl" by doubleday &amp; company (united states) and valentine mitchell (united kingdom) in 1952, it became very famous critically. it became very popular, and the 1955 play "the diary of anne frank" and movie version were both based on the diary. the play was first acted in new york city. it won the pulitzer prize for drama in 1956. the book is in several lists of the top books of the twentieth century. it discusses the themes of sharing and selfishness in the war, about how someone can be different on the inside and the outside, and about the loneliness of growing up.