The Book Thief
Markus Zusak
552 pages
First sentences: First the colors. Then the humans. That's how I usually see things. Or at least, I try.
Reflections: This book tells the story of a young girl, Liesel, who lives near Munich during World War II. The story is set in the early 1940s and is told by "Death," who is quite busy claiming recently-departed souls. Liesel is placed in foster care and gradually assimilates into a new community and a new family. Her new family is poor, and she takes to stealing books in order to feed a reading habit. The story develops when Liesel's family takes in a Jewish man named Max, the son of someone her "Papa" fought with in the first world war. Liesel becomes close to Max, and also befriends a local boy named Rudy. The story intensifies as the war progresses and the Allies begin bombing Germany.
I very much enjoyed this author's writing style and the unique point of view of this story. I became attached to the characters and the relationships. Many of the events are foreshadowed again and again, so when the climax occurs it is not a huge surprise but still very sad. The last 100 pages or so were gripping.
This book left me pensive and contemplative, as it caused me to reflect once again on the holocaust and its terror and devastation.
The original review can be found here.
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