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Knopf

The Book Thief

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Format: Paperback


Description

1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • ONE OF TIME MAGAZINE’S 100 BEST YA BOOKS OF ALL TIME • A NEW YORK TIMES READER TOP 100 PICK FOR BEST BOOKS OF THE 21ST CENTURY The extraordinary, beloved novel about the ability of books to feed the soul even in the darkest of times. When Death has a story to tell, you listen. It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still. Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement. In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak, author of I Am the Messenger, has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time. “The kind of book that can be life-changing.” —The New York Times “Deserves a place on the same shelf with The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank.” —USA Today DON’T MISS BRIDGE OF CLAY, MARKUS ZUSAK’S FIRST NOVEL SINCE THE BOOK THIEF. Read more

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Knopf Books for Young Readers; First Edition (September 11, 2007)


Language ‏ : ‎ English


Paperback ‏ : ‎ 608 pages


ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0375842209


ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 07


Reading age ‏ : ‎ 10+ years, from customers


Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ 730L


Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds


Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.13 x 1.27 x 8 inches


Best Sellers Rank: #914 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #1 in Teen & Young Adult Holocaust Historical Fiction #1 in Children's Holocaust Historical Fiction Books #8 in Contemporary Literature & Fiction


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Top Amazon Reviews

    • Awesome Read!
THE BOOK THIEF has been on my shelf practically since it came out, but I kept putting it off and reading other things instead. Finally, last month, I decided to read it. My conclusion? *This is a beautiful book* A beautifully rendered story, interesting style, and unique voice. I love the unbridled audacity of writers who are brave enough to use odd and innovative styles to tell a story. Some view these new styles as too gimmicky, all show and no substance, that it’s the style rather than the story which is garnering attention. My litmus test is always whether the underlying story can stand on its own without the odd stylistic choice. THE NIGHT CIRCUS can’t GONE GIRL can’t THE BOOK THIEF most certainly can It’s the story of Liesel Meminger (a character destined to go down as a classic, on par with Mary Lennox, the Darlings, and the Pevensies) in Nazi-era Munich. Liesel’s mother is giving her up, along with her younger brother who doesn’t survive the journey, to the Hubermanns, a husband and wife living on Himmel Street. He is a painter, she washes clothes and swears at people. Liesel bonds with her new papa immediately. Her new mother, though rough, treats her well and genuinely cares for her. We meet Rudy, Liesel’s spunky best friend, a runner with flaxen hair who gets in trouble with her, protects her and loves her. We meet the Nazi youths and witness the casual xenophobia and cruelty of the era from the eyes of a little girl. We witness a gut-wrenching scene of book burning, particularly for our little book thief. *NOTICE HOW I HAVEN’T MENTIONED THE USP YET?* It’s because the story is strong enough on its own and doesn’t need the unique selling point of Death as Narrator. As I’m sure you’re aware, the story is narrated by Death. He’s an apt choice given the horrific war in which the story is set. Death is by turns perplexed, sympathetic, apathetic, and complimentary of humans. He claims to be haunted by humans at times and seems to have been inordinately interested in Liesel and her family. He is a fully omniscient narrator, knowing the past, present , and future of the characters. He can also see into them, their thoughts, motives, and inner lives, and he uses this knowledge to tease and hook the reader, telling us key future events throughout the story. THE GOOD: There’s a lot to praise here, but to name a few: Liesel is a great protagonist. Believable and real. She has a streak of meanness in her that makes her very real. The characters are deftly drawn across the board. Papa is a great, warm, eminently likable person. Rudy is awesome and makes a great sidekick for Liesel. Even the mayors wife and Frau Heil Hitler are well-rounded. There is some beautiful prose here. One passage that caught my eye: "Trust me though, the words were on the way, and when they arrived, Liesel would hold them in her hands like the clouds, and she would wring them out like the rain." There are some wondrously imaginative and moving passages. Not to spoil anything, but I especially loved the bit where Max ‘transforms’ the book for Liesel. Stunning. THE BAD: Not much to bemoan, but I didn’t care for: The constant translating from German to English. I felt like most of it could be understood from context. The way it was formatted: constant paragraph breaks, centered and bold test was repetitive and began to annoy me after a while. But other than those two minor gripes, which have nothing to do with content, I think this is a great book and one I will be rereading over the years. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on November 10, 2014 by Layla A
    • A Masterpiece - One of the best novels I have ever read!!
"The Book Thief " is one of the best novels I have read. Truly! Author Markus Zusak's storyline is both sad and wonderful, as it deals with Germany during WWII and the Holocaust. His memorable characters have tremendous depth, and the plot is extremely original. However, what makes this book so extraordinary is the author's writing, which, at times, is more poetry than prose. I frequently found myself reading passages of the elegantly written narrative aloud. Appropriately for the times, Death is our narrator and a major character. Death, the "gatherer of souls," writes of himself, "I do not carry a sickle or scythe. I only wear a hooded black robe when it's cold. And I don't have those skull-like facial features you seem to enjoy pinning on me from a distance. You want to know what I really look like? I'll help you out. Find yourself a mirror while I continue." In the Prologue, Death states, "Here is a small fact: you are going to die. Does that worry you? I urge you - don't be afraid. I'm nothing if not fair." The figure describes himself as amiable, even affable, but warns, "don't ask me to be nice. 'Nice' has nothing to do with me.'" When the novel begins, Death is gearing up for mass production. It is 1939 and WWII has just begun. By 1945 the entire world will be at war. And it is Death who comments on man's inhumanity to mad, almost without emotion, in as objective a manner as possible. This inhumanity will cause it/him to work 24/7 in various places in the world at once. That's what I call multi-tasking. Nine year-old Liesel Meminger is our protagonist, "the book thief," although when we meet her, she is unschooled and cannot read very well. Liesel, her little brother Werner, and their mother are on a train to Munich. All three are skinny and pale, with sores on their lips. It is on the train that Death comes to claim young Werner's soul. Liesel and her mother despair. The boy is buried near the city, and one of the gravediggers, an apprentice, drops a black book as he walks away in the freezing winter weather. Liesel picks up the book, without calling out to notify the gravedigger of his loss. The book is titled, in silver letters, "The Gravedigger's Handbook." It is the first book she steals. So much has been taken from her, the grieving child feels like she settles part of the score when she commits the theft. In Munich the girl's mother bids her good-bye and turns her over to a foster care woman. The mother disappears, never to be seen again. Liesel and the woman make their way to a small town, Molching, on the outskirts of Munich, close to the Dachau death camp. They stop at a small house on Himmel Street, where her new foster parents, Hans and Rosa Hubermann, await the little girl. Hans is a kind and loving man who quickly takes to Liesel and visa versa. Rosa is also basically kind, although she puts up a front as a shrewish loudmouth. She is a laundress by trade and Hans is a house painter who loves to play the accordion. He is not a member of the Nazi Party. When he realizes he is losing customers because of his lack of enthusiasm for Hitler and the Nazis, he tries to join but his papers are on permanent hold. Their two children are grown and live away from home. Liesel has terrible nightmares and occasionally wets the bed. Hans, hearing her late night screams, sits with her and comforts her, sometimes until dawn. Occasionally he plays the accordion for her until Rosa yells at him to "shut up!" The empathetic, kindly man and the traumatized little girl form a close bond and Hans begins to teach Liesel to read, especially as she is fascinated by words. She believes that words have great power, after all, Hitler didn't need guns to persuade the German people to follow him and to hate Jews. He used words. When she begins school and the teacher realizes that the girl can't read, she is placed in a class with younger children. Most humiliating! It is during one of Liesel's frequent nightmares, that Hans begins to teach her to read. Since the Hubers have no books of their own, Hans uses Liesel's "The Gravedigger's Handbook." as a teaching tool. Then another book, a copy of "Mein Kampf," is acquired, one of the few available books which have not been burned. And yet another book, "The Shoulder Shrug." which Liesel snatches from a pile of burning books, is added to her collection. "Germans loved to burn things. Shops, synagogues, Reichstags, houses, personal items, books and of course, people." Eventually, Liesel acclimates to her new home and makes friends, especially with Rudy, the boy next door and her biggest fan. She never overcomes her nightmares, however, nor does she ever forget her mother and brother. It is at this time when she is forced to join Hitler Youth. Then Max Vandenberg, a German Jew in hiding, comes to ask Hans to fulfill a promise he made to his father, a comrade in arms who saved Hans' life during WWI. A Jew seeking refuge...what to do? Hans, an honorable man, feels obligated to keep his promise, even though it would mean death for Rosa and himself if Max were discovered in their home. Liesel is sworn to secrecy. The Hubers take the man in and set up living quarters for him in the basement. Max becomes part of the family and forms a close friendship with Liesel. She becomes his eyes and ears to the outside world. He eventually writes a book for her, "The Standover Man" - a simple, illustrated and haunting book about what it is like to be born Jewish in Hitler's Germany. Life goes on. Liesel learns to read and steals more books - fourteen in all. She and her friends adventure. Germany declares war on Russia. Death's work increases, especially on the eastern front and in the concentration camps. He/it feels overwhelmed by the souls to collect from the camps, gas chambers, battlefields, and causalities from air-raid bombings. Max begins to do crossword puzzles in the old newspapers Liesel occasionally finds for him. Rosa's and Han's workload diminishes significantly. Times are tough, rationing is strict, and people don't have money to send out their laundry or to have their houses painted. And, of course, Hans carries the stigma of not belonging to the Party. I don't want to include any spoilers, so I will stop my summary here. This is a powerful novel that kept me riveted throughout. As I wrote above, I sometimes stopped to read parts of the prose aloud. There is humor here also. One needs comic relief when reading a novel about such a heinous period in mankind's history. Markus Zusak's parents grew up in Nazi Germany and Austria. He frequently thought of writing about the things his parents had seen during the war. He says he thought about the "importance of words in that time, and what they were able to make people believe and do." The novel's last words belong to Death: "A LAST NOTE FROM YOUR NARRATOR: I am haunted by humans." Jana Perskie ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on May 15, 2009 by Jana L.Perskie

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