Reviews

Die Bücherdiebin by Markus Zusak

ilsekuiper1's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

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

5.0

saigealiya's review against another edition

1.0

I would have given this book 0 stars if I could have honestly. A poorly written character with little relatability. I can't describe my dislike of this book and I never really understood what all the excitement was about it.

phaedruus's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

4.75

christofd's review against another edition

4.0

4.75/5 The Book Thief is not a story of book thievery. It is the tragic story of Liesel Meminger living in the middle of war torn Germany.

It was an interesting creative choice to make Death the narrator, one which I enjoyed. It is also not much that you see WW2 from a German perspective, although the Hubermanns are ‘Jew-lovers’.

The Book Thief had a slow start for me, as I initially put it down when reading the sample to read another book. This was because I was struggling to gain momentum and enjoy Zusak’s ‘flowery’ writing style. Once we got into the real story however, this problem vanished.

Overall, The Book Thief is a heartbreaking tale that makes you appreciate the heartwarming moments even more.

admiralteaa's review against another edition

reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

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

ayushstark's review against another edition

emotional hopeful relaxing sad 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? N/A

4.25

The book takes you through a wholesome journey of a young girl, who sees so much in her life but still she is so hopeful and joyous with in her life. Her relationship with people close to her, books all set up in a very difficult point of time in history. Loved it

tmsresolute's review against another edition

5.0

Such an endless masterpiece with beautiful writing. Don't forget to get tissues when you'll read this.
4.75/5 stars

thedreamer29's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

chocorb's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense fast-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

4.5

this book, to be frank, ruined me. it made me feel so many things, learn about life during the second world war, and make so many more friends. i loved every single character in this book. even death. 

im not going to lie, i finished this book in two days. it intrigued me so much from the start, stirred a determination in me, and it was worth every moment. 

i would be happy, giddy even, at a chapter, and then the next would send me into a fit of rage, which transformed into overwhelming gloom. it all felt so…real, i was there in those moments, i experienced them and came out feeling more alive than before.

emotional parts of this book include, obviously, papa. we all loved him. he will stay in our hearts forever, he washed our sheets when they were wet, taught us how to read late at night, and his presence will never be forgotten from the depths of our memories. it did hurt the most when he died.
rudy was also an utter delight in the book, and i cannot describe how much the kiss at the end destroyed me in ways i can’t comprehend myself. his soul, i hope his soul saw that. i hope he died knowing everyone loved him. when he was bullied, i felt rage. nobody hurt rudy.
mama, we were all afraid of her, but knew she loved everyone more than she could ever show. the moments of crisis, of unexpected tenderness, im sure all our hearts warmed.
there was also the people that didn’t appear much, but left an impact so deep it would be impossible to hide: max, mayor’s wife, rudy’s father.

i lived a lifetime throughout this book, several actually. 
it was brilliant.

emilyjanebru21's review against another edition

5.0

After I read the Book Thief I wanted to go out with 10000 copies of the book and give it to every person I saw. I wanted to tell anyone and everyone about this amazing book.
Instead of just reading the Book Thief, I inhaled it, in my eagerness to live and breathe the story. I loved the way Zusak used Death as a narrator -something I think gave the novel a unique twist.
I can only describe the story itself as achingly - achingly tragic, achingly beautiful. Once I'd finished the book, after staying up till the early hours of the morning, I spent an hour or so just thinking over it. The book was really emotional and easily made me cry.
Zusak created characters that I loved, so much so that I read of their journey and life as if it were my own.
I loved, loved, loved The Book Thief, and it will now take it's place amongst my favourite books.