The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak

The Book Thief isn’t just about someone stealing books. It’s about a young girl who is just trying to figure things out. It’s 1939 in Nazi Germany. LieselMeminger has just lost her brother and is about to be turned over to Foster care by her mother.

She ends up on Himmel Street, Munich (Himmel is Heaven in German).

Before Liesel arrives there, she steals her first book: “The Grave Digger’s Handbook.” Even though she cannot read, she still takes it. Just for a memory. Liesel’s accordian-playing foster father, Hans Hubermann, teaches her how to read.  Sometimes it is hard for Liesel, because of her constantly swearing foster mother Rosa Hubermann. Eventually, Liesel makes many new friends. Her best friend is Rudy Steiner, who is also her partner in crime, and he lives right next door.
Max Vadenburg, a Jew hidden in her basement, is another one of her friends. Tommy, Frau Holtzapfel, Ilsa Hermann, and many others help her along the way on Himmel Street.

Personally, I have a few favorite characters. Liesel is one of them. I love her personality; she is different. I felt like the people on Himmel Street would have crumpled without her. Rudy Steiner was another; he was hilarious. I don’t know what them two would of done without each other. Their friendship was adorable. I loved each character in this story. They were all unique.

The thing I enjoyed most in this story was the narrator. It’s a narrator you never thought it would be. It was Death. Death was who (or what) told the story. It was very interesting and different. I loved it. The only thing I hated about the story is that it made me cry. Twice.

The Book Thief was released in a movie adaptation on November 15th.