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Book Overview: The Book Thief By Markus Zusak

790 Words4 Pages

Zachary Benhamou
2/14/2017
Book Report

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Publisher: Picador (Australia), Knopf (U.S.)
Published: In 2005
584 Pages
Genre: Historical novel; coming-of-age novel; Holocaust novel

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is a novel that mostly takes place in the town of Molching, Germany, near Munich, between 1939 and 1943. Death tells the story of Liesel Meminger, starting when she is only nine years old and still going through the pain from the death of her brother and splitting up from her mother. Liesel goes to live with her new foster parents, Hans and Rosa Hubermann at 33 Himmel Street in Molching, Germany. At first when Liesel arrived she was made fun of because she wasn’t able to read. She realized that without words …show more content…

Erik Vandenburg, Max 's father, saved Hans 's life during World War I and trained Hans to play the accordion. After Max comes to 33 Himmel Street, Liesel is interested about the man in her cellar, but also a little scared of him. Then one night, Liesel takes Rudy to the mayor 's house and receives her title of book thief when she creeps in through the window and takes The Whistler from Ilsa Hermann 's library. After another late-night trip to Ilsa Hermann 's house, Liesel and Rudy take the Duden Dictionary and Thesaurus, which seems to have remained placed beside the window as a present. Liesel discovers a letter inside from Frau Hermann, which stated that Liesel is allowed to come in the front door, as well. Liesel and her family, along with Rudy and his family, take shelter in the Fiedlers ' basement becausethey were told that their basement was not deep enough to protect them from the bombings so they moved, just for their safety. Rosa gives Liesel a book called The Word Shaker, which Max made for her. In it, Max describes a girl who is able to use words like some of Hitler 's most accomplished word shakers, but she uses her words to help her friend and confiscate small bits of hate from a forest ruled by brutality. Liesel returns to Frau Hermann 's library and becomes irritated at the arguments, and how they can fill her up, but can also bring so much hatred to so many people. Ilsa Hermann and the mayor gather Liesel from the police station and take her home with them. Death ends the story by telling us about Liesel Meminger 's death, how she has dwelled a long life in Sydney with her husband, three children, and many grandchildren. Finally, all along The Book Thief was

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The Book Thief- Markus Zusak Assignment: 2 Dialectical Journals, one for each of the following sections: Pages 1-266 (through chapter “The Gamblers”), Pages 267-the end! Dialectical Journal for The Book Thief From the Book Write down the 2 or 3 most important things that happen in this part of your book. An important part of the book was in the first chapter where liesel's brother dies. It start the book of by giving the point of view that the story is writing in and it also introduces one of the main characters.

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Liesel gave Ilsa a reason to try and someone to look after. The author quotes, “The words distributed into a room that was full of cold air and books. Books everywhere! Each wall was armed with overcrowded yet immaculate shelving. It was barely possible to see the paintwork.

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Liesel shows that she is not afraid to act out and stand up for what she believes in when she tells Hans that she hates the Fuhrer. She also presents the fact that she is a hard worker because of how dedicated she is when she is learning how to read, she never gives up and she is always patient with Hans because she knows he’s not the strongest reader either. She understands that they need to help each other out when it comes to reading and writing. Rudy reacts to Liesel in a cute, funny way because he has an immense and obvious crush on her. He is always pestering her for a kiss and I believe he really does love

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a. "She had watched a bomber pilot die in a metal case. She had seen a Jewish man who had twice given her the most beautiful pages of her life marched to a concentration camp"(521). - Liesel has been through so many struggles. Her brother died in front of her, her mother sent her away, and she witnessed almost everyone she loved depart from the world. She had more than enough reasons to quit, but she decided to stay strong through it all.

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At the beginning of the book we are introduced to a young girl, her brother, and her birth mother. The young girl, Liesel Meminger, was on the train to her foster parents when her brother died; that’s the first time she ever met Death. At the funeral of her brother one of the grave diggers dropped the gravedigger book and she took it with her; her first book ever stolen. Liesel Meminger is a young girl who is very sweet. She had a difficult life growing up and it caused her to be sacred of lot’s of things, like losing family and friends and losing her books.

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Liesel has realized she must respect the man who was the reason for her and her entire families suffering. She has realized she officially has lost her home, that she is completely isolated from the community. “It was quite a sight seeing an eleven year old girl try not to cry on church steps, saluting fuhrer”(Zusak 115). After losing all of these emotionally wrecking things Liesel learns and understands she needs to keep going forward. She refuses to give up she although times are rough manages to think, it could be worse.

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The power of words in “The Book Thief” and the endless strength they carry is a prime topic throughout the book. “The Book Thief”, a novel narrated by Death about Liesel, a young German girl who is given up for adoption to live with the Hubermann’s shortly before World War II. Liesel discovers the power that words, written or spoken, have to transform people, relationships, and lives. In the novel, Mark Zusak uses the relationship between characters to signify the power of words. Within “The Book Thief” the author suggests that words hold much power and have a major role in crafting the relationships between the characters.

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“It’s just a small story really, about, among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist fighter, and quite a lot of thievery…” (Zusak, pg. 5) The novel, The Book Thief written by Markus Zusak in 2005 explores the theme of family relationships. It is through nine-year-old Liesel Meminger, the protagonist, that the idea of a broken family during the era of Nazi Germany is explored. The Book Thief depicts the struggle of young German girl, Liesel Meminger, living in Germany during the time of Hitler’s reign.

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The Honors Program Reading List should include Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief for it not only accurately depict a small German town during World War II, but expands upon historical aspects to delve into themes of death, death, and the power of books. Imbedded with historical references to “The march of Jews”, “Burning of the books”, and the 1936 Berlin Olympics, The Book Thief forces readers to experience the horrors of attempted genocide. It addresses the taboo mortality of all humans and stresses utilizes a child’s gradual loss of innocence to guide reader’s own understanding of death and blind hatred. This darkly humorous novel follows the experiences of Liesel Meminger, a new foster child to the German Hubermann family through the eyes

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Liesel learns a valuable life lesson from Hans, and he also provides her with a place to escape to in order to escape to heal and cope. While reading stories, she can immerse herself in another world and distract herself from the intense trauma she has been through. With these skills, Liesel can find comfort and control in words, a way of healing. Although the power of words is used in contrasting ways, Hans and the Nazi party demonstrate how words

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“Look proud, he advised himself. You cannot look afraid,”(Zusak Ch 25). Max fought for the safety of his life for two years by hiding out. No matter how hopeless your situation might look, keep fighting because you never know what will happen unless you try. Having Max living in Liesel's basement teaches her first-hand how serious things are, and the dangers of what Hitler can do.

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In the novel, Liesel’s behavior shows justice and love through her friendship with Max. Although her relationship with Max in the beginning of the book was rather awkward, soon her perspective towards Max soothes and their relationship bonds to a friendship. There are some times when Liesel’s actions were unbelievable, especially during the Jew parade. “ ‘ You have to let go of me Liesel.’

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Hans Hubermann, Liesel’s foster father, helped Jewish people in whatever way he could. When a Jewish shop named Kleinmann’s was vandalized, Hans asked the owner if he needed any help cleaning up, and promised to come back the next day and paint his door, which he did (Zusak 181-182). Hans delayed applying to the Nazi party because he didn’t agree with their beliefs, and by helping the owner he was put under more suspicion, however he felt that it was a proper action and didn’t allow danger to stop him. In addition to Hans act of kindness, the Hubermanns took a Jew named Max into their care, and allowed him to stay with them to be safe. In a book overview, Tabitha Hall observes, “Though not Jewish, Liesel and her foster parents struggle as they keep their Jewish friend hidden…” (“Overview: The Book Thief”).

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