The first thing most young readers will notice about the novel, The Book Thief, written by Markus Zusak is its thickness. This book is made up of 550 compelling yet devastatingly sad pages. This book may be hard to read for some people as it is a story about a young girl and her family during the time of Nazi Germany. Although this is a sensitive topic for many, Markus found a way to creatively allow it to be tolerable for everyone. The book is so intense that it is actually narrated by Death. I personally did not pick up on this concept that Death was the narrator. I was actually told by a couple of friends, and ended up appreciating that they had told me. This concept may be hard for less observant readers to pick up on, but it is a big …show more content…
Her thievery begins when she steals her first book at her brother’s funeral shortly before she arrives at the Hubermann’s. The book is titled “The Grave Digger’s Handbook,”-fitting for a funeral. The thievery would continue throughout the story, and she would learn to read and write because of them. Her love for books helped her cope with her losses but sometimes sidetracked her in school. Books took everything off of her mind. She would continue to steal books, and once she had built a relationship with the mayor’s wife, she capitalized on that as well, stealing from her library. Reading had built her relationships, and had conforted her along with many other families and people on Himmel Street. In times of terror, when the town was bombed, she began to read to the families in the bomb shelters. This eventually benefitted her family when she is asked to read a weekly chapter to the neighbor Frau Holtzapfel, and receiving coffee beans in return. Frau Holtzapfel is also dealing with a loss as one of her sons who is in the army died in combat. Her love for reading seems to be what keeps her going and helps her appreciate the new life she was given. Her thievery does go beyond books, as she and her best friend Rudy (who actually has a crush on Liesel), join a thievery group that steals food. This was a move of desperation for when times got really tough and food and money got tight. Her true love for thievery was always and will always be connected to
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak tells the story of Liesel Meminger and her life during World War II. It is told from the point of view of Death through his interactions near her and others in her life. Zusak uses imagery, language, and tone to share his theme of the beauty of humans.
In The Book Thief, the author, Markus Zusak writes a beautiful story following a young German girl named Liesel who experiences the atrocities that occur during World War II. Early in the book, she is given by her mother to foster parents who raise her as their own. During her childhood, she begins stealing books and learns about the power of words. Throughout the story, she bonds with many people including her neighbors, her foster parents and a Jew hidden in their basement. Most of the characters end up dying due to the horrible living conditions and time period the book takes place in.
3. What are the best parts of this book? Why? What are the worst parts of this book? Why? Give details with page numbers from the book to explain.
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is a moving, award-winning story that follows the life of a German girl, named Liesel, during World War 2.
Relationship to meaning: Death is important to the story because he provides a detailed explanation of what is going on with all characters and he isn’t bias towards any specific character.
The Book Thief, written by Markus Zusak, outlines the tragedies and events that take place in Liesel Meminger’s life, in Nazi Germany. Throughout this young girl’s struggle of living in the oppressive Nazi regime, she is able to learn crucial lessons about life and the art of survival- some that follow her to the grave. The most important lesson she learned and the pivotal theme of the novel is that rebellion can be and beneficial in certain situations.
The Book Thief is a historical fiction novel by Markus Zusak set in Munich, Germany during the Nazi reign from 1936-1943. The novel incorporates a main character that is, in the beginning, an innocent child who doesn't understand the world and takes her on a journey where she grows up and matures through the hardships and challenges of her life. The story is narrated by the character Death, who is a fresh take on the Grim Reaper, only wearing the black cloak when it's cold and never carries a syte. Death describes the life Liesel Meminger, an orphaned girl who witnesses her brother's death and burial and finds herself being adopted by the benevolent old couple, the Hubermanns. The rest of the story follows Liesel's journey through her incredibly challenging life with the Hubermanns and characters such as Rudy, The mayor's wife, and Max helping her along. Symbolism in The Book Thief deepens the story by conveying many different ideas and emotions that supports the reader's understanding of the story. This is especially apparent with the use of the gravediggers to help the reader remember characters, the use of color to help the reader feel the proper emotions and remember the correct events, and the use of Liesel's changing feelings about Rudy to convey how Liesel grows and matures through the book.
Themes are inserted within literature by the author in an attempt to provoke readers to think about the topic provided. In the novel, The Book Thief, written by Markus Zusak, many topics are presents, such as, courage, suffering, and human behavior. The most prevalent, however, is the courage possessed by certain individuals. This theme, bravery, is evident throughout the entire course of the novel in Liesel Meminger, the Hubermanns, and Max Vandenburg.
I have read many books throughout my years but none has been quite like Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief. Many authors give the readers dull, pointless stories that are hard to get into but not Zusak; Zusak gives the readers a feeling that they are in or taking part in the story. The best type of book is one that you can’t put down; because of the writing style of Markus Zusak's, The Book Thief is one of those books. By the use of literary devices, an omniscient point of view, and not keeping the order of the events necessarily straight Zusak makes his writing different and more intriguing than other authors. A lot of authors barely ever use literary devices and if they use them it’s always the same type of device, but Zusak uses an abundant amount of different literary devices per page.
3). In addition, literacy empowers Liesel when she reads to others to comfort them, and to feel in control of herself. During a bomb raid, Liesel reads to her frightened neighbours to help calm them down: “everyone was silent but Liesel…for at least twenty minutes, she handed out the story. The youngest kids were soothed by her voice, and everyone else saw visions of the whistler running from the crime scene” (Zusak 381). Liesel also begins to read to Frau Holtzapfel which helps console her during her time of grieving over her lost son. Frau Holtzapfel even offers to “‘stop spitting on [Rosa’s] door’” in exchange for Liesel to read to her. Being literarily educated, which is restricted during World War II, results in great power for many people. For Liesel, the power of words, writing, and reading help comfort her during her emotional trauma. Literacy “ultimately save[s] [Liesel]” (Smith para. 3) in the sense that books give her a strong purpose to her life. As Grace Lee has said, “not only does Liesel steal books, but she also steals her life back from death itself” (Lee 21). During a time where she is distraught and
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak shows through the midst of brutality, beauty can still be shown. The main characters Liesel Meminger, Rudy Steiner and Hans Huberman, prove this statement they are all faced with perilous situations, but still manage to show beauty throughout the situations. Liesel Meminger display beauty during the air raids, as she manages to read to people in the basement. Rudy Steiner displays beauty he jumps in the river to get Liesel’s book. Through Hans Huberman nobel character he displays beauty as he risks his life to hide a Jewish man in his basement.
If you believe in yourself and have dedication, pride, and never quit, you will be successful. Markus Zusak, the author of The Book Thief, creates a story of a young orphan named Liesel Meminger, who is living with her new foster family. She learns the wonders of reading from her foster father and grows to love books. During Liesel’s time with her new family, she shows determination through her efforts and kindness with her encounters with other people. Liesel in The Book Thief expresses her traits, such as hardworking, and bravery.
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is a novel that has great recognition because of the great themes and social issues that are in the novel. With the use of strong relatable protagonists, Zusak is able to address issues such as racism, authoritarianism, discrimination and much more by using the character’s feelings and how they deal with such issues. With the novel being set in Nazi Germany it creates an atmosphere for inspirational characters that show a different perspective on life during WW2. With the use of diverse characters; from innocent kids to wise adults, Zusak portrays an image of silent disobedience and courage. Liesel, Rudy, Max, Rosa and Hans all establish their opinions towards these social issues through their own use of defiance.
The Book Thief, written by Australian novelist Markus Zusak, follows a young girl living in Nazi Germany, and employs innovative techniques to convey the central idea of the extremes of human behavior. This central idea was explored through stylistic techniques and conventions such as Death as the narrator, juxtaposition, irony, lack of chronological order, narrative voices, and themes, namely the power of words.
"No matter how many times she was told she was loved there was no recognition that the proof was in the abandonment" (Zusak 32). The novel The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is the story of Liesel Meminger, a young girl who struggles through WWII and faces the pain and suffering of abandonment. When one is faced with such an abandonment and is forced to cope on their own, they may feel lost and alone. These emotions force people to find comfort. As in Liesel 's case, some people find comfort in books and words. Liesel 's perspective on abandonment can be seen through how she coped with her childhood trauma, Max 's illness and the Himmel Street bombing.