The Book Thief

Over break, I decided to re-read one of my all time favorite books. I suppose this happened accidently, as it was one of the first books I grabbed in my book shelf, threw it in my luggage case, and brought it with me on the train ride down the East Coast to visit colleges.

One of the funny coincidences about this particular book choice, was that the first scene of thenovel also begins on a train ride- a particularly haunting train ride down to Munich Germany in the early 1930's.

On the train is a young German girl by the name of Liezel who is traveling with her mother and brother, where only two of which reach their destination. Her younger brother does not make it through the ride, and dies midway to Munich.

In this mannor, Death follows Liesel all the way to her destination, where she will be handed over to her new foster parents. Literally. One of the things i absolutely love about the author Marcus Zusak, is his abstract choice of narration. Zusak personifies Death, and lets 'him' narrate the novel, giving it an ominous, tone.

However, one might think death to be completely foreboding, but in this novel, he is even humorous as he makes remarks in his witty descriptions of characters. For example, every time a new character is introduced into the novel, you'll get a little blurb such as:

"A Portrait of Pfiffikus:

He was a delicate frame.
He was white hair
He was a black raincoat, decomposing shoes, and a mouth- and what a mouth it was."


This unexpected humor from Death seems to make him human; even in the face of World War II in the heart of Germany. This is what I absolutely love about Markus Zusak. He is able to creat a world in which your whole perspective becomes altered, as the reader is forced to see through the eyes of the world’s most cruel narrator.

Also, what I found interesting in this book was the fact that it follows a blonde haired, blue eyed girl who is an active member of the hitlet Youth. Often times, when we read World War II literature, I find we are hearing the perspective of the persecuted Jews in order for the author to express the racsism and fear of this time period. However, in this novel, although the main character is not on the run from Nazi's, Zusak is still able to demonstrate the cruelty of racism as Liezel eventually comes to terms with the immorality of the period.