A review by delz
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

This is an amazing, beautifully written book that centers on one period in history, but is in fact a truth about anytime humanity exists. We saw dangerous words wielded to destroy during the Holocaust/2nd WW. We saw it happen in 40’s/50’s with McCarthyism and we see it now in 2024. The narrator is omniscient, because it’s death. Death sees all the destruction and the beauty and shares snippets with the reader throughout. Death follows the story of a little orphan girl, Liesel Meminger during her life as the foster daughter of Rosa and Hans Hubermann, living on Himmel St, in Molching, Germany. All of the characters feel real, are well fleshed out and as heartbreaking as this story is at times there is still joy to be found within their relationships. 

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