The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is a historical fiction book that follows the story and development of Liesel Meminger, a young girl from Nazi Germany, in addition to the stories of those around her. At the beginning of the book, she is nine, going on a journey with her brother to live with her foster parents. Unfortunately, her brother dies, and he must be buried along the way. There, a book falls out of the grave digger’s pocket, detailing his profession, and Liesel steals her first book.
She finishes her trip and meets her foster parents, Hans and Rosa Hubermann. Hans is kind while Rosa is harsh, but they both love Liesel and they form a family together. She becomes best friends with her neighbor, Rudy Steiner, and they steal food together.
Eventually, Liesel’s father Hans discovers her book and begins to teach her to read. She is fascinated by reading, books, and the words they contain. So, after meeting the mayor’s wife through Rosa’s job, she steals more books from her library. Then, suddenly, a Jew named Max Vandenburg comes to the Hubermanns’ house, and they risk everything to start hiding him. Max writes his own story in a sketchbook, which later motivates Liesel to write her story. Events such as Max’s arrival, Hans’ drafting into the military, and the bombings near their town help Liesel grow, realize how the war affects their life, and ultimately contribute to her development as a person.
Sometimes it is heart warming, and sometimes it is heart wrenching, but throughout it all, it is one of the most unique and interesting Holocaust fiction books I’ve read. A few things make this book unique. One of them is the narrator, Death. But, while it is a cool concept, it is not executed in such a way that would make it different from any other omniscient third person narrator. While there are things done with Death as the narrator that couldn’t be done otherwise, they do not affect the story much.
The thing that I think makes this book stand out the most is that while it is WW2 fiction, the Holocaust doesn't really take a lead role in it. The tragedy still plays a part in the story of Max, a Jew that is hidden in the Hubermanns' basement. However, war is not the focus of the story, nor is genocide. Instead, the story is focused on the lives of the Germans, and the Holocaust is used to develop that. While the war and other events of the time are significant in the story, overall it mainly focuses on the life and character development of Liesel and the people around her.
However, with that comes an issue. It doesn't seem like any conflicts persist throughout the whole book, or that there is a single event that is particularly significant, until the very end at least. The book's parts felt exactly like that: parts, connected much more loosely than I feel they were intended to, and I think the book would have been better had it had more of a flow to it.
The writing in this book was poetic and beautiful in a way that highlights the emotions and paints pictures that are almost more effective than I imagine visual art would be. In the story, Liesel discovers the power of words, and I think Markus Zusak’s writing does an outstanding job demonstrating how significant her discovery was.
I enjoyed reading this book, even though it had flaws and was not executed as well as it could have been. Its strongest point is that the book is very descriptive while also being easily comprehensible. But the story, while touching, isn’t as cohesive or well written; it’s not a major issue but it feels more like the vignettes of Liesel’s life more than a complex story. This is not the best book I’ve ever read, but I would recommend it.
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