The Book Thief
by Markus Zusak
Read: September, 2015
Published: 2005
Genre: Historical Fiction
Series: NA
It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.
Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who 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. (Amazon)
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Why did you read this book?
This one has always kind of been in the back of my mind. I really liked the cover and I knew that death was the narrator, but that's all I knew about it. It seemed interesting, but I never really had a strong desire to read it, and so it wasn't very high on my To Read list. Then, about a year ago, I saw the movie and I loved it. Of course, the book is always better, right? The book was officially on my list. This summer I had the good fortune of finding it at a used book sale for a measly fifty cents. Score! I finally just finished it the other day, so here we go.
What didn't you like about this book?
I already knew what was going to happen anyway, because I saw the movie, but I hated how Death would tell the reader what was going to happen right away. You knew the characters were going to die and you couldn't help but fall in love with them. I mean, it was excellent writing and it was very well done. But as a reader, it sucked because it hurt. (That really should be in the good things, but I don't have very many bad things). There are parts in the book that are just a bit slow and I had a hard time really getting into, particularly in the first half.
What did you like about this book?
One of my favorite parts about this book was Death...not all the death that happened, but the character. The way Death is portrayed is very different here than in most books. This Death is exhausted with his work and he is gentle with the people he takes. I also loved the other characters (Liesel, Hans, Max, and Rudy especially). I was really appreciated that the story was of a young German girl living in Nazi Germany. Most novels from this point in our history comes from the point of the victims. Yes, their story needs and deserves to be heard, but so did Liesel's and Rudy's, two kids growing up in a world that didn't fully make sense. Markus Zusak writes so beautifully that you feel you are in the story. He makes it funny, and he causes anger and heartbreak. I knew what was going to happen, both because I saw the movie and because Death spoils the ending (thanks a lot, Death!), but it made me cry anyway.
Book vs. Movie
I really loved the movie when I saw it. It made me cry, so of course I loved it. I thought it was well cast and tastefully made. It also doesn't hurt that it had a beautiful, and at times haunting, soundtrack with excellent piano scores (thank you, John Williams!). However, as always, there is so much more to the book. The relationships between the characters are much deeper and there were characters and scenes that didn't make it into the movie. Overall, I think the movie did a good job following the most important parts of the book, but I do have one bone to pick. Rudy was Liesel's best friend. This is shown in the movie, but you feel it in the book. There was so much more to him than what the film allowed for.
Bottom-Line:
I love this book. I love the movie. I love them both so much that I don't even care that I own the movie cover edition (and I usually care very much about that). One thing I might suggest is watching the movie first. The book is better and you will be looking for the differences and the absences if you read it before you see the movie. But they are both worth the time, so watch and read.
"A small but noteworthy note. I've seen so many young men over the years who think they're running at other young men. They are not. They're running at me." -Death, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
