The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

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“Where’s the fight? He wondered. Where’s the will to hold on? Of course, at thirteen, he was a little excessive in his harshness. He had not looked something like me in the face. Not yet” (189).

This quote sticks in my mind because it is so symbolic of the text as a whole. This book is constantly asking: What is worth surviving for? Everyone is the story chooses survival over resignation for one reason, each individually unique: for Liesel it is books and her papa, for Rudy it is a kiss from Liesel, for Hans it is his family and accordion, for Ilsa Hermann—the mayor’s wife—it is the opportunity to provide for Liesel what no one else can, etc. Written from the voice of “Death” personified, the stories embedded in the novel give the reader an opportunity to see how each character interprets life and what he or she deems indispensible. This is an incredibly powerful structure for a book and I have no doubt that other readers were as affected as I. The style of the narrative took away the complexity and boiled life down to its most simplistic elements. What is needed to live a life worth living? At some points in the novel, survival become literal—with bread and coffee grounds, but in others survival is grounded in the human soul. Liesel does not differentiate between books and food—they are equally vital: “‘You hungry?’ Rudy asked. Liesel replied. ‘Starving.’ For a book” (287). This book allows the reader to see the true power of various art forms like music, writing, drawing, and reading. These are not just extracurriculars! They are essential to life.

Liesel’s adoration and thievery of books is such an interesting and effective way to show the Holocaust through a child’s eyes. She not only sees injustice in the physical mistreatment of Jews, but she is able to see the ways that language has been taken away and limited for them. She is able to understand the power dynamic in a whole new way based on her understanding of language. It was so refreshing to meet a young person who truly perceived the power of words. She sees the complexity of language and the ways it can be used to both free the mind AND manipulate it. This power through the manipulation of words culminated beautifully when Max took Mein Kampf and physically covered its pages in white paint in order to write over them—the ultimate subversion. Not only was Max taking away the power of Hitler’s words by deleting them, he was literally replacing them with his own language. This was so incredible: it gives me chills to recall.

After Max has been walked to Dachau and her papa has gone to war, Liesel takes her anger out on words: “Soon there was nothing but scraps of words littered between her legs and all around her. The words. Why did they have to exist? Without them, there wouldn’t be any of this. Without words, the Fuhrer has nothing” (521). What an insight for a young child!

There was so much to this book, it is challenging to discuss all of the elements I found to be interesting, important or perception-altering, but I think the role of the narrator in the text was extremely pivotal to my understanding of the novel. I can honestly say I’ve never read (or cared to read) in which “death” plays a primary role but I was pleasantly surprised, by the outcome of this “character” in the text. “Death” has been personified in movies, books and on television as an evil, malicious being, with strong dislike for happiness or life-giving energy. This book completely flipped this idea on its head, and made me think about dying in an entirely different way. Death does not relish in taking life, death wants to understand people better, death wants to be fought and not freely accepted. With so much more to it than I can express adequately, this book is a must read for everyone, take the time to step into Liesel’s world and be forever changed. Happy reading!