The Book Thief
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4.5 • 430 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher 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 • A KIRKUS REVIEWS BEST YOUNG ADULT BOOK OF THE 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.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Markus Zusak’s renowned novel is set during World War II, but this is no war story. Rather, it’s an exploration of life and death, family and love, and the ultimate power of words—for good and evil. Narrated by an omnipresent Death, The Book Thief tells the tale of Liesel, a young German girl who learns to read and write while the horrors of Hitler’s reign close in on her. Written in a stunningly vivid, poetic style and told in a manner that's digestible and utterly engaging, it's no surprise that this poignant book is enduringly popular.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This hefty volume is an achievement a challenging book in both length and subject, and best suited to sophisticated older readers. The narrator is Death himself, a companionable if sarcastic fellow, who travels the globe "handing souls to the conveyor belt of eternity." Death keeps plenty busy during the course of this WWII tale, even though Zusak (I Am the Messenger) works in miniature, focusing on the lives of ordinary Germans in a small town outside Munich. Liesel Meminger, the book thief, is nine when she pockets The Gravedigger's Handbook, found in a snowy cemetery after her little brother's funeral. Liesel's father a "Kommunist" is already missing when her mother hands her into the care of the Hubermanns. Rosa Hubermann has a sharp tongue, but Hans has eyes "made of kindness." He helps Liesel overcome her nightmares by teaching her to read late at night. Hans is haunted himself, by the Jewish soldier who saved his life during WWI. His promise to repay that debt comes due when the man's son, Max, shows up on his doorstep. This "small story," as Death calls it, threads together gem-like scenes of the fates of families in this tight community, and is punctuated by Max's affecting, primitive artwork rendered on painted-over pages from Mein Kampf. Death also directly addresses readers in frequent asides; Zusak's playfulness with language leavens the horror and makes the theme even more resonant words can save your life. As a storyteller, Death has a bad habit of forecasting ("I'm spoiling the ending," he admits halfway through his tale). It's a measure of how successfully Zusak has humanized these characters that even though we know they are doomed, it's no less devastating when Death finally reaches them. Ages 12-up.
Customer Reviews
Loved it!
This is by far one of my favourite books. The story is moving, touching and breathtaking!! The way the book is written and the style is unique and beautiful. I would totally recommend this book to anyone who want to be involved in a new and unique story , and experience any kind of emotions and feelings!
My favourite novel of all time
I loved this novel. I had a hard time putting it down. Loved the narrator and how he carries the reader through the story. I also became attached to the characters. I laughed and wept through this novel. I will read it again and recommend to all!
The Book Thief
Mr. Zusak has written a pretty good book, from the perspective of a young child in Nazi Germany at the height of the war. He offers insight into various people's lives at the time-people not often spoken of in WW 2 novels. The working class Germans, the children, the older males, who get conscripted late in life, when the Nazi downturn in Stalingrad decimated the Wermacht are all described in detail, providing a very realistic portrait of what life in a neighbourhood in Munich would have been like at the time. Also, the atrocities faced by the Jews are presented in sickening detail. The vast majority of the book deals with the German family dealing with harbouring a Jew-which was obviously the most risky proposition imaginable-punishable by a fate worse than death. Zusak does a good job of portraying the breathless, hopeless, and also the few joyful moments experienced by two families and their children. I found this to be a very moving piece of work,,that was very likely relived over and over at the time, by so many unfortunate people.