The Grave Digger's Handbook Character Analysis

In the novel, The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak, “The Grave Digger’s Handbook” is a motif that causes character development throughout the story causing Liesel to have the book as her only memory of her mother and brother, learning how to read and write, and it leads to stealing more books. When Liesel, her mother, and her brother, Werner were going on a train to Munich, Liesel has a dream about Adolf Hitler, The Furer, who was reciting one of his powerful speeches and when she woke up she found her brother dead. The train stops for track repairs, and Liesel's mother leaves the train carrying Werner in her arms. When Liesel’s brother was getting buried by two grave diggers, one of them, an apprentice, who drops his book and Liesel picks it up. She and

Rosa welcomes her by calling her sausmench but she still loves Liesel very much. When she went to sleep Liesel hid “The Gravedigger’s Handbook” under her bed, even though she couldn’t read it was a memory. For the first few months she was there, she would have nightmares about her family and it led to wetting the bed. One night she when she wet the bed, Hans came to clean it up and he found the book. She told him how she wants to learn how to read to know if the grave diggers buried her brother even though Hans only went to school until 4th grade. “The Grave Digger’s Handbook” leads to her learning how to read and write. After the bedwetting incident and Hans finding the book, Hans helps Liesel with writing by writing the ABCs and giving an example, for example “S” for sausmench. Every night Hans would read the book to her and this would help Liesel and Hans with their reading skills. When she went to school, she felt embarrassed because she was in a lower class for her age. Liesel would practice her ABCs and reading with Hans after