Eleven-year-old Liesel Meminger is a foster child who has recently arrived in a small town outside Munich, Germany during WWII. Liesel has been sent to live with Hans and Rosa Huberman, presumably for the small stipend they’ll receive. Liesel is still suffering from the loss of her little brother and the difficult and somewhat mysterious separation from her mother. She takes an immediate like to Hans, who is kind and thoughtful, but takes much longer to warm up to the abrasive Rosa.
Liesel makes friends with next-door neighbor Rudy and establishes herself as a self-proclaimed book thief. Becoming unlikely friends with the Mayor’s wife Ilsa affords Liesel the opportunity to read the books in the Mayor’s massive library. Along the way, Liesel is witness to the atrocities of war, heartbreaking events, love, loss and other life-changing events.
I saw the movie The Book Thief several years ago and loved it. When I decided it was time to read the book I was absolutely captivated. Although the book is 550 pages long, I read it in just two days – it was THAT good.
The book is different in several ways, ways in which I won’t go into in my review. Suffice it to say that I’m glad I saw the movie first and then read the book. I think I might have been disappointed with the movie version if it had happened in opposite order. This just goes to show how well the author has written this important piece of fictionalized history. The time period, location, mood, characters, etc. come to life as the story unfolds.
I was surprised at some of the other reviews, stating that the book was just plain depressing. I’m not at all sure how a book that deals with the systematic extinction of a race of people can be written about in an uplifting, happy way. Yet, the book is so much more than a story about a German girl who is living in Nazi Germany during WWII. There are many lovely, tender elements to be found in The Book Thief. The additional anniversary edition footnotes written by the author (at the end of the book) provide wonderful insight.
I think it’s extremely important that all generations read books like The Book Thief. This is part of history and, as poet and philosopher George Santayana said, "Those who do not remember the past are doomed to repeat it." This is a book that is emotionally draining, but very much worth the read!
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Customer reviews
Nazi Germany Munich, Jewish fugitives, Jesse Owens
Reviewed in the United States on January 14, 2019
January 13, 2019A Review by Anthony T. Riggio of the book The Book Thief by Markus ZusakThis book was recommended to me by Chris Manion, author of God's Patient Pursuit of my Soul, who advised that I would really like this story about Nazi Germany in the 1930's through the end of World War II. I ordered this book from Amazon in the Special Anniversary Hardback edition.Markus Zusak in his writing created an interesting way to present the dialog of the narrator. At the outset I thought it was the main protagonist Liesel Meminger narrating then it seemed to morph into another person, not clearly identified at first. It made for an uncomfortable and challenging beginning only to learn after several appearances to be the spirit of Death. This however did not create a feeling of horror or was it distracting once you got the hang of this unnamed narrator. It did not take away from the overall story and the flow was rhythmic and consistent throughout the book, The overall style was very interesting and provided the reader with a glimpse of what was to follow in the succeeding chapter.Many reviews described the book as a something a child would enjoy or relish. I am not sure if this is accurate as the story was very mature in its concept and gave one an inside track on the happenings of Germany during the rise and fall of the Third Reich. The human protagonist is a young girl about ten years old and how she is being abandoned by her natural mother to a family living in a suburb of Munich, Germany. She is traveling with her mother and younger brother who is quite sick. When the train stops, some distance from the final destination in Munich, the boy dies and they have to bury him in a small cemetery where the grave diggers misplace a book; The Grave Digger's Handbook and Liesel, purloins it for no apparent reason other than a simple souvenir of remembrance of her deceased brother. The mother deposits Liesel with the Hans and Rosa Hubermann family, a peasant family who lived in the poorer section of town. Rosa is a seemingly strict foster mother and her husband Hans is unemployed and on disability. Hans becomes Liesel's mentor and teaches Liesel to read via the book she stole from the cemetery. During a book burning in Munich, where Jews were being persecuted, forbidden books were cast into public bonfires and Liesel stole her second book and added to her foster father's reading curriculum. Her friend Rudy is a Tom Sawyeresque young boy who develops a love for Liesel and several fun experiences are had by both.The Hubermanns take in an escaped Jew into their home and hide him in their basement, a very dangerous thing in Nazi Germany. Max the Jewish fugitive becomes a second mentor to Liesel and she develops a similar relationship as she has with Hans.During one of the book burning events, Liesel steals her third book which add to her curriculum being used by Hans and now Max. She is spotted by the Mayor's wife and consequently a covert relationship is developed by the wife of the mayor and Liesel, which results in another mentor for Liesel.The book has all the drama and sadness one would expect in a novel contemporaneous with Nazi Germany but it is a book worth reading. It has humor, love, sadness, drama, tragedy, suspense, unexpected and predicted outcomes.I have to say I loved this book and reading it became obsessive with me and I believe it demonstrated the author's great talent. I unhesitatingly gave this book five stars and highly recommend its reading.
Reviewed in the United States on January 14, 2019
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Top reviews from other countries
david doherty
Never really captivated!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 17, 2019
Valerie L Pate
A Lot of Love for Liesel...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 21, 2014
