The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Bibliography
Zusak, Markus. 2005. The Book Thief. New York, NY: Random House. ISBN 9780375842207

Plot Summary
The Book Thief is a narrative told through from the point of view of death whose focus is on Leisel Hubermann, a girl who cannot read but enjoys collecting books.

Critical Analysis
From Death’s point of view we are introduced to the many unforgettable characters found in the Book Thief, but in particular Liesel, a young girl whose book stealing begins with a book entitled, “The Grave Digger’s Handbook”; even though she does not know how to read. Set in Natzi Germany, the life about Liesel unfolds with her mother taken to prison because she is a communist, her younger brother dying along the way and Leisel taken to live with people who eventually become her foster parents, Rosa and Hans Hubermann. Rosa is a spirited woman who runs the house with an iron fist and Hans is a kind man who loves to smoke, plays the accordion and is a painter. As Liesel settles in with the Hubermann’s she eventually makes friends with the neighborhood children like Rudy whom is always trying to steal a kiss from her. As the war progresses and Jews are being taken prisoners the Hubermann’s themselves hide a Jew by the name of Max in their basement and eventually becomes very good friends with Leisel, especially after they find out they both have nightmares that haunt them at night. Liesel’s book thieving continues throughout her life as her father patiently teaches how to read until his death. Readers will thoroughly enjoy the personification of death and the rich and philosophical language found throughout, “Five hundred souls. I carried them in my fingers, like suitcases. Or I’d throw them over my shoulder. It was only the children I carried in my arms.” (p336) The book is divided into ten parts that are divided into various chapters that include small interruptions identified in bold and that are often poetic in nature, “A book floated down the Amper River. A boy jumped in, caught up to it, and held it in his right hand. He grinned. He stood waist-deep in the icy, Decemberish water…” (p528) and concludes with an epilogue.

Review Excerpt(s)
Publishers Weekly, Starred Review- “An achievement.”

The Horn Book Starred Review- “Exquisitely written… A tour de force to be not just read but inhabited.”

School Library Journal, Starred Review- “An extraordinary narrative.”

Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review- “Beautiful and important.”

Connections
*Compare with Hitler Youth: Growing up in Hitler’s Shadow by Susan Bartoletti
*History of Germany
*Jews and Germany
*Death
*World War II