Sunday 8 January 2012

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

The Book Thief

Goodreads Summary: 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. . . .

Set during World War II in Germany, Markus Zusak’s groundbreaking new novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau.

This is an unforgettable story about the ability of books to feed the soul.



Why I Read This Book: I picked this one up on impulse at Winners because I noticed it had been laid down on the shelf next to the checkout. It was on my TBR list, so I picked it up. I had read some good reviews for it.


Review: I really liked this book. It is essentially the story of a girl growing up in Nazi Germany, who steals a few books (its hardly the main theme of the book however). Its eye opening in the way that you don't often hear the about Nazi Germany from the perspective of a German with the innocence of a child. The book definitely assume that you already know a bit of the history of the story, which was fine by me, as I do, but could deter someone who does not. The book also doesn't really take sides on "right" or "wrong" the way you would expect it to. Since the book is told from Death's perspective, it has more of a "this is what happens, and this is what people did" more than a "this is what they think and this is how they feel". I found this nice, because I as the reader felt what I needed to in places, instead of being told that the character does. I enjoyed the book, it wasn't a fast paced, can't put it down book, but it did tell a good story, which I enjoyed.


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