Liesel Meminger Aka The Book Thief

Liesel Meminger, her brother and her mom are traveling by train to the place their mom picks out to be their foster home and to live with their foster parents Rosa and Hans Huberman. But on the way her brother, Werner, dies and is buried in a graveyard full of snow. Liesel found her first book called The Grave Diggers Handbook and takes it. This is how she gets her nickname the book thief. They get in a car and drive to Himmel Street and arrive at the home that Liesel is staying at. As they arrive she thinks Rosa is a bit scary but she is getting used to how she

8. Hans’ Compassion Liesel witnesses Hans trying to give bread to a Jew. Not only does Hans and the Jew get whipped but now the Nazi’s become suspicious of Hans and search his house. Max is no longer safe in the basement and must leave. Liesel now has another loved one taken away from her.

When readers first meet Liesel Meminger, she is a young girl standing quietly with her mother and brother on the train. At this time, she seems confused and a little bit afraid. She doesn’t know exactly

In a way, Liesel and Max give each other purpose. Max needs Liesel to brighten his life with stories from the outside world and to bring him the energy of youth. Liesel benefits from Max because she learns a lot about suffering and he is someone with whom she identifies. They both rely on each other for comfort, friendship, and trust. They quickly become good friends. They share their nightmares because they are the only ones that can relate to one another,. Max has left his family and Liesel has lost her brother. Sharing their misfortunes the two become connected through sharing their souls and the printed word. Liesel teaches Max that he can express his scrappy personality through words "I have hated the words and I have loved them, and I

Upon arriving at the home of her foster parents, housepainter Hans Hubermann and his wife Rosa, Liesel finds it difficult to adjust. She is haunted by nightmares about her mother and dead brother. She eventually develops a bond with Hans, who comes to her every night and stays with her until she is able to fall sleep again, Hans, upon noticing “The Grave Digger's Handbook” tucked under Liesel's mattress, decides to take advantage of the sleepless hours he spends with Liesel each night by teaching her how to read and write. Rosa Hubermann, whose personality is much coarser than Hans', takes Liesel under her wing in her own way by having her help with her job of washing and delivering laundry for other households. Shortly after

Liesel Meminger is a main character described in “The Book Thief”. After her mother can no longer support her Liesel and her brother, although he does not make the journey, are sent to a foster home in a small town in Germany called Munich were Liesel meets Hans and Rosa Hubermann or Mama and Papa. Although the initial warming up is hard Liesel soon becomes very close to her Papa. “Over the next few weeks and into summer, the midnight class began at the end of each nightmare” (Zusak,69). Hans teaches Liesel each night how to read and write to ease her mind when all Liesel can think about is her dead brother. Hans truly becomes Papa when Liesel trusts Hans will never let her be

Name and significance – Adolf Hitler, he is the cause of all Liesel’s pain and he is the reason she keeps losing her loved ones.

Liesel Meminger, who was a very sympathetic young girl which her words were used from her warm heart towards people. Frau Holtzapfel had lost both of her sons, so for her to be happy, Liesel would read to her a lot, which also made Frau Holtzapfel feel comforted. Also when Max was taken in by the Hubermann’s, he was a Jew, which meant he wasn’t allowed to see the outside world. Liesel would go outside and tell Max the

As the enforcements of the Holocaust start appearing in Wiesel’s hometown, his father’s behavior begins to slowly change, making it easier for Wiesel to connect with him. While watching other families being deported, Wiesel, his father, and the rest of his family witness the Hungarian Police strike old men and women, without reason, with truncheons, for the first time. The next day, as they are being deported from the ghettos, Wiesel writes, “My father wept. It was the first time I had ever seen him weep. I had never imagined that he could” (16). Wiesel’s prior belief that his father was emotionless is proven to be wrong before they even arrive at the concentration camps. Wiesel is able to relate to his father in this moment, for he too is terrified of what lies ahead. As Wiesel and his family arrive at Birkenau, the Nazis

Over time, they find things that draw them together and they become close friends. This is amazing because at the time Germans were completely against Jews and the only thing most of them wanted for them was for them was to be sent to concentration camps. Sharing the fact that they both “lost” their families, they realize that both have misfortunes, but they also realize that they can never give up. Eventually, they overcome their fears and nightmares. Liesel also teaches Max that he can express how he feels about everything through words. Liesel and Max both had some kind of a passion for reading and writing which created another strong bond. In times of hardship, they were both the quiet man, and the outgoing girl that were able to support each

This connection also saves Max from losing himself to the madness of World War II. Next, words can create friendships between the unlikeliest of people. Ilsa Hermann writes Liesel a letter saying, “when I noticed the first book missing, I thought I had simply misplaced it, but then I saw the outlines of some feet on the floor in certain patches of the light. It made me smile” (369). Ilsa and Liesel only talk when she comes by to do the laundry.

After losing her mother and her brother, Liesel’s life and identity is changed drastically many times. It is through books that she discovers and becomes comfortable with this change. When she first meets Hans and Rosa Hubermann, her new foster parents, she does not wish to speak with them or get to know them. However, once Hans discovers Liesel with the book she stole when her brother was buried, The Gravedigger’s Manual, they bond over Hans teaching Liesel to read. Liesle describes the first time her and Hans have a lesson in the middle of the night: “She had done this at school, in the kindergarten class, but this time was better. … It was nice to watch Papa’s hand as he wrote the words and slowly constructed the primitive sketches” (Zusak

The Second World War has a big impact on the growth of Liesel’s character throughout the film. It was the reason for the loss of a lot of important people in her life; her birth mother, brother, Max and helped shape Liesel through her methods of coping. At the start of the film on the way to her new parents house Liesel’s brother Werner dies on the train in his mother’s arms. When arriving at her new parent’s home she was very shy and seemed disoriented. This shows that she didn’t cope with the loss of her brother very well and it was a traumatic experience.

Liesel Meminger In Markus Zusak’s book, The Book Thief, Liesel Meminger holds the status of being a hero from beginning to end. Liesel starts as a foster child and finds a family. Her neighbor, Rudy, becomes her best friend, partner in crime, literally, and eventually, her true love. Her foster parents become real parents to her and Max, the Jew hiding in their basement, becomes family.

Liesel Meminger faces a couple accounts of hardships, or adversities, before even arriving at the doorstep of her foster parents Rosa and Hans Hubermann. In the fifth chapter of The Book Thief, Liesel’s brother dies directly in front of her own eyes, resulting in endless dreams every night about her brother, always ending in his death; this also creates pathos for the reader because Liesel’s pain and agony is visible every single day, but is being used to strengthen her relationship with her foster-father, Hans (“Papa”). Another factor in the development of Hans and Liesel’s relationship is the loss of Liesel’s mother. A loss usually signifies a death, but in Liesel’s case, it signifies her mother leaving and never to answer the letters that are continuously sent to her. Hans Hubermann has a soft and docile character, and is not only used to comfort Liesel after her nightmares, but to become the parent figure that Liesel craves as a young 10-year-old girl, especially after losing her entire