Book: The Book thief
Author: Markus Zusak
Genre: Historical fiction; Young Adult
Rating: 5 stars
Goodreads Synopsis:
It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will be busier still.
By her brother's graveside, Liesel's life is changed when she picks up a single object, partially hidden in the snow. It is The Gravedigger's Handbook, left behind there by accident, and it is her first act of book thievery. So begins a love affair with books and words, as Liesel, with the help of her accordian-playing foster father, learns to read. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor's wife's library, wherever there are books to be found.
But these are dangerous times. When Liesel's foster family hides a Jew in their basement, Liesel's world is both opened up, and closed down.
In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time.
My Review:
I don’t know whether it is a book written by a mere mortal or by death itself. But I must say that this book is soul-crusher and heart-mover in every bit of it. This book has the power to shake your entire self because it makes you speechless and hits your soul in a good and bad way. The book possesses a unique way to narrate the story of a book stealing girl, an accordionist, a wardrobe faced woman, a boy with the hair of color of lemon, and a feathery haired Jew. By making death the narrator of this book, Zusak highlighted the horrific conditions of Nazi Germany at the time of WW11. Death is not only given the role of a narrator but also a character. It is a personified entity who shares its experience and feelings about the dying souls and how one girl captured its attention for a long time.
The setting of this book is Germany during WW11. The book tells the story of a girl, Leisel Meiminger, who lives with her foster parents at Himmel Street, Molching. She is an orphan; her mother left after delivering her to her foster parents. She first acquainted with death at the time when her brother died on train to Molching. The first book that she stole was The Gravedigger’s Handbook which actually she found lying in the snow in graveyard. She has been called a book thief by Rudy, a lemon haired boy, in this book because she randomly stole a couple of books first but on purpose later on.
Her foster parents, Hans Huberman who is a humble and kind man and Rosa, a sharp-tongued and ‘wardrobe’ built woman as described by narrator, has a big mouth but kind heart. Hans is a painter as well as an accordionist; he also teaches Leisel how to read and stays with her after her nightmares. Rosa is a housewife who swears a lot and also does laundry of rich families of Molching.
This small town runs under the shadows of Hitler’s puppets, and those who are thought to support Jews are instantly arrested, interrogated and punished by Party members. Jews are treated no better than animals and to show mercy to them could earn anyone a death sentence. The story takes a sudden turn when a Jew, Max Vandenberg, running from Nazi Germans, came to take refuge at Hans’ house. Hans has to take him under his protection because Max’s father saved his life in war. Even after knowing all about its risk, Huberman hides Max in his basement. Leisel and Max become inseparable friends and even later on it is because of Max that Leisel started writing her own story.
The writing style of this book is lyrical. Plenty of eye-catching sentences are used to describe atrocities of war, it consequences and how death feels about mass massacre. This book could be all-depressing and melancholic if not for its writing style. The dark humor of death, the poetic description of characters and surroundings make a reader want to laugh out loud at many occasions. The narrator’s frequent intervention with characters dialogues is definitely not going to set your teeth on edge but make you want to read more of it. I can’t move further without sharing some such eye-catching sentences.
A bathrobe answered the door. Inside it, a woman.
Imagine smiling after a slap in the face. Then think of doing it 24 hours a day.
Besides the writing style, another thing that I loved about this book is its character development. Each and every character unravels his/her mysteries along with the plot development. Leisal Meiminger once a child too scared to pronounce a word starts stealing books to read as the story progresses. Rosa, who makes herself look too headstrong and rude from the outside, ends up hiding a Jew in her basement. Every character is so real, suffering from the horrific effects of war in one way or the other. This book indeed is written to be devoured by every reader. Well, I know very well that my petty words can never do justice to the real beauty of this book. The book is so much more than any of the reviews written by reviewers. It leaves you in tears but at the same time give you hope that beauty can be found even in hard times. Outstanding book ever!
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