The Book Thief

THE BOOK THIEF: Markus Zusak: Alfred A. Knopf: Fiction: 552 pgs.

Narrated by Death, this is the story of Liesel Meminger. Liesel witnesses the death of her younger brother while on a train with her mother. Liesel (and the brother) were being taken to live with a foster family outside of Munich during the Nazi regime. At the snowy cemetery, she steals her first book when the gravediggers apprentice drops his manual. The foster parents, Hans and Rosa Hubermann, are good working class people. He's a WWI vet who's a house-painter and plays the accordion. Rosa takes in laundry. Hans starts teaching Liesel to read from the gravediggers manual during the night when she wakes from nightmares. Hans buys her a couple more books, but she continues to steal them when the opportunity arises. At a Nazi book burning, she steals a few more and is seen by the mayor's wife who allows her to come to their house and read in their library. The war continues to impact their lives, especially after Max, the Jewish son of the soldier that taught Hans to play the accordion, comes to hide in their basement. The books play an important part in all of their lives and eventually save Liesel's life.

This is an interesting view ordinary life in Nazi Germany and how the power of the written word can lift people out of the mundane problems of their lives. Very thought provoking. I actually listened to this on CD - well read by Allan Corduner.

DB