Reviews tagging 'Antisemitism'

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

418 reviews

lottiemort's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Antisemitism and War

Minor: Genocide and Violence

te_ss_i's review against another edition

dark emotional sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Cursing, Confinement, Classism, Bullying, Suicide, Emotional abuse, War, Medical content, Antisemitism, Abandonment, Torture, Racial slurs, Misogyny, Child death, Child abuse, Hate crime, Genocide, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Racism, Murder, Gun violence, Gore, Violence, Terminal illness, Grief, Forced institutionalization, Death, Cultural appropriation, Physical abuse, Body shaming, Medical trauma, and Injury/Injury detail

lewyrockett1's review against another edition

dark emotional funny sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Violence, War, Child death, and Antisemitism

lauradebrouwer's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

😭😭😭😭😭

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Deportation, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Genocide, and Antisemitism

crina12's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I just finished this book and I cannot stop crying. This book gave me so many different emotions throughout. The writing is absolutely amazing. The Book Thief truly is revolutionary.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Violence, Racism, Death, Blood, Antisemitism, Gore, Genocide, Forced institutionalization, Death of parent, Confinement, Child death, and Grief

laurengvrce's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence

Moderate: Hate crime, Antisemitism, War, Death, and Child death

amberl3af's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

To date, this is the only book that actually made me cry, real tears. This book broke me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War and Antisemitism

Moderate: Death

Minor: Cursing

cc_shelflove's review against another edition

challenging reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I have a lot of mixed emotions surrounding this book. First things first: I wish I could have protected Papa at all costs! 🥺 The relationships between Zusak’s characters felt strong and true. Papa and Liesel’s bond was so strong he entrusted the 10-year-old girl with his largest secret: he was hiding and helping a Jewish man, Max, in his basement. Oh, and the gift Max made Liesel for her birthday… 😭 Yet another strong connection featured in this book!

Where I struggled with this bestseller was its third-person point of view. Personally (and please don’t come at me for this), I wasn’t a fan of Death being the narrator, but I commend the author for his originality. Death’s recollection of events lacked emotion at times, and I wished I could see certain happenings through Liesel’s or Max’s eyes instead. Death also often referred to events that hadn’t happened yet, which was a bit confusing for this reader. I would much rather have read Liesel’s ‘dusty black book.’

A central theme in The Book Thief was the power of words. I enjoyed watching Liesel use a tome to bring neighbors together in a bomb shelter, in a time of uncertainty and fear. The author did a nice job of bringing this theme to a close in the epilogue as well. Overall, it’s possible I might have enjoyed this more if I hadn’t read The Little Liar so recently; that novel will reign superior in my mind. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Abandonment, Violence, Death of parent, Suicide, War, Confinement, and Classism

whatamidoing_rn's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This book made me cry and books don’t often do that. It was an amazing read and I think everybody should read this at least once in their lifetime.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Child death, Antisemitism, War, and Death of parent

Minor: Grief

julkaeva's review against another edition

dark emotional lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

• Loveable characters? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism

Moderate: Child abuse, Violence, Slavery, and Physical abuse

Minor: Injury/Injury detail and Suicide