Zusak, Markus.
THE BOOK THIEF. New York: Alfred
A. Knopf, 2005. ISBN 9780375842207
It is 1939, in Nazi Germany, and Liesel Meminger is
a young girl with two big secrets. She
steals books wherever she can find them – starting with The Grave Digger’s Handbook at her little brother’s funeral – and
her foster family is hiding a Jewish man in their basement, while Hitler’s
regime marches the streets outside their home.
Liesel’s foster father, Hans Hubermann, teaches her how to read and
gifts her with the power of words, a power so great it can comfort the entire
neighborhood as Liesel reads aloud in a crowded basement during bomb raids; so great
it can convince an entire population to follow Hitler and the Nazis in
destroying the Jewish race. Narrated by
the elusive Death, who floats in and out of Liesel’s life as she loses those
she loves most, THE BOOK THIEF is a haunting story of love and friendship that
will stick with you long after you read the last page.
Markus Zusak has created a perfect masterpiece of
young adult literature. Recognized as a
Michael L. Printz Honor Book, THE BOOK THIEF is eloquently written with such
captivating style that even the devastating plot of death and destruction in
World War II Germany is bearable and even hopeful. Readers will pull for Liesel from the very
beginning, caring so greatly about her and her friendships with her loving
foster father Hans, Max, her hidden friend in the basement, and Rudy, a
fiercely loyal friend in her Molching neighborhood. Liesel's pure, innocent heart is evident
through her interactions with the gentle young man hidden in her basement. Readers will feel her worried anticipation as
she collects treasures for him while he is sick and asleep for weeks at a time,
and will later agonize with her as she dares to hope to catch of glimpse of him
each time the Jews are marched through her city streets. Rudy, a friend who fiercely loves Liesel, is
her constant companion and will stop at nothing to impress her, hopeful of winning
a kiss, despite her constant protests against it. The budding romance between the two friends
grows carefully throughout the book, ending with Rudy finally earning a kiss at the story’s heartbreaking conclusion.
Zusak’s cast of characters are genuine and endearing and Liesel's journey through her childhood in Nazi Germany is painful at times, but always
full of hope that she will escape it all, with her beloved books and a
captivating story to tell.
Zusak’s book is so beautifully told that readers
will often forget that the voice behind the story is that of Death, a
fantastical element that gives THE BOOK THIEF a unique and creative spin. The characters of the story do not interact
with Death, other than when he swiftly carries them away if they meet the
ultimate cost of the war raging around them.
Yet Death is not proud of his job and does it with a heavy heart, and at
times even he is too overcome with sorrow to face his gruesome task. He is
gentle with the children he must take and describes the glowing colors of the
sky he gazes at, rather than the silent faces he must carry away. Zusak makes his unusual narrator believable
and even pitied, as Death goes about his job, condemning the war and the ways
humans can kill so many of their own.
Perhaps the hardest of all for Death was when he was forced to pick up
young Rudy. As he saw him lying lifeless, Death echoes the emotions of the
reader, noting, “He does something to me, that boy. Every time.
It’s his only detriment. He steps
on my heart. He makes me cry.” (p. 531) Death follows Liesel along throughout her entire life, keeping a special
keepsake for her - the book she poured her heart into throughout the war, which
was lost when her town was bombed.
Zusak’s theme is illustrated best through the
secret friendship of Liesel and Max. The young girl helps save the life of the
hidden Jew, and he repays her by gifting her with two books he has written for
her, handmade stories that tell how Hitler decides to rule the world with words. Yet Liesel, the heroic “Word Shaker,” can overtake the power of evil with her
pure-hearted love for all those around her.
Love conquers evil. The message
is told so perfectly through Max’s stories and illustrations, which are as
precious in the novel as they surely are to Liesel in her collection of
treasured books.
THE BOOK THIEF is a perfect story and one of my
favorite young adult books. It’s long
list of awards prove that others feel the same about Marcus Zusak’s novel:
Winner of the Michael L. Printz Honor Book Award
for Excellence in Young Adult Literature
Winner of the Book Sense Book of the Year Award for
Children’s Literature
Winner of the National Jewish Book Award
Winner of the Association of Jewish Libraries Teen
Book Award
A Quill Award Nominee
A PUBLISHERS WEEKLY Best Book of the Year
A KIRKUS REVIEWS Editor’s Choice
A HORN BOOK Fanfare
A SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL Best Book of the Year
A BOOKLIST Editor’s Choice
“One of the most highly anticipated young-adult books
in years.” – THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
“It’s the book to pick up for people who love to
read.” – THE FLORIDA TIMES-UNION
Markus Zusak delivers a haunting yet poetic story
of love amidst despair in THE BOOK THIEF.
Students studying World War II and Nazi Germany can read the story for a personal tale of how the war affected those living through this gruesome time. Readers who love THE BOOK THIEF may also enjoy:
Students studying World War II and Nazi Germany can read the story for a personal tale of how the war affected those living through this gruesome time. Readers who love THE BOOK THIEF may also enjoy:
BETWEEN SHADES OF GRAY, By Ruta Sepetys, ISBN
014242059X
THE UPSTAIRS ROOM, By Johanna Reiss, ISBN 006440370X
NUMER THE STARS, By Lois Lowry, ISBN 0547577098
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