The Book Thief
1st Edition front cover
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| Author | Markus Zusak |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | Trudy White |
| Cover artist | Colin Anderson/Brand X Pictures/Getty Images |
| Country | Australia |
| Language | English, German |
| Genre | Novel-Historical Fiction |
| Published | 2005 Picador |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 584 |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 183612599 |
| LC Class | PZ7.Z837 Boo 2007 |
| For additional editions see The Book Thief > Editions at Goodreads.com | |
The Book Thief is a novel by Australian author Markus Zusak.
The Book Thief centers on the life of Liesel Meminger, a ten to fourteen-year- in Germany during World War II. Liesel's experiences are narrated by Death, who describes both the beauty and destruction of life in this era.
After her brother's death, Liesel arrives in a distraught state at the home of her new foster parents, Hans and Rosa Hubermann. During her time there, she is exposed to the horror of the Nazi regime and struggles to find a way to preserve the innocence of her childhood in the midst of her destructive surroundings. As the political situation in Germany deteriorates, her foster parents hide a Jewish man named Max, putting the family in danger. Hans, who has developed a close relationship with Liesel, teaches her to read in secret. Recognizing the power of writing and sharing the written word, Liesel begins to not only steal books the Nazi party is looking to destroy, but also write her own stories and share the power of language with Max.
The protagonist of the story, she is an adopted girl on the verge of adolescence, with blonde hair that "was a close enough brand of German blonde" and a "smile that was starving" when she very rarely showed it. Her eyes, however, were a dark brown. She is fostered by the Hubermanns after her father "abandons" their family, her brother dies, and her mother is forced to send her to a foster home owing to her political belief-communism, which is forbidden then. Liesel is the "book thief" referred to in the title. Liesel Meminger is fascinated by the power of words "I have hated the words and I have loved them." and ends up stealing books from bonfires, mansions, and snow.
Liesel's foster father and husband of Rosa, Hans was a German soldier during World War I , accordion player, and handyman. He develops a close and loving relationship with Liesel, and becomes a main source of strength and support for her throughout the novel. He, like Liesel, doesn't have much experience with reading. Together, the two help each other with reading and write all the words they learn on a wall in the basement.
Liesel's sharp-tongued, often abrasive, foster mother, she is 155 cm (5 ft 1 in) and has a "wardrobe" build, with a displeased face, brown-grey tightly-cinched hair often tied up in a bun, and "chlorinated" eyes. To supplement the household income, she does washing and ironing for five of the wealthier households in Molching.
Liesel's neighbor, Rudy, has bony legs, rugged teeth, blue eyes, lemon-colored hair and a penchant for getting in the middle of situations. Despite being the Nazi physical ideal (blond hair and blue eyes), he does not support the Nazis. As part of a household with six children, Rudy is habitually hungry. He is known throughout the neighborhood because of the "Jesse Owens incident", in which he colored himself black with coal one night and ran one hundred meters at the local sports field. He is academically and athletically gifted, which attracts the attention of Nazi Party officials, leading to an attempted recruitment. His lack of support for the Nazi party becomes problematic as the story progresses. Rudy becomes Liesel's best friend, and eventually falls in love with her, always trying to get a kiss out of her. He dies in a bombing and finally gets his kiss from Liesel, as she weeps for him, realizing that she loved him as well.
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