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January 31, 2014
I started this book right after I finished “The Fault in our Stars” by John Green. Which is about teens living with cancer, has some deeply emotional scenes and of course....deals a bit with death. So as I jumped straight from that one to “The Book Thief”, I basically knew I was getting into another heavy, serious book that would definitely tug pretty hard on the heart strings. Also, I read both books on the kindle app on my iPad so I didn’t really know how long either of them were. “Stars” is normal length and I read it pretty quickly but “Thief” is much longer - and I didn’t notice that until I was probably halfway through.
So “The Book Thief” was a bit of a grind for me since it was surprisingly long and such a serious read. However, I'm SO glad I stuck with it. Ok....now....finally...on to the review.
This terrific novel spans several years in young Liesel Meminger’s life, covering many events that happen to her and a handful of other characters. Liesel learns, grows, matures and becomes a wonderful young lady. I loved how she craved books and coveted reading and how she ultimately even became a writer. She’s truly a memorable, admirable and inspirational star of the story. I liked how her relationship with her foster Mama and Papa developed over time and though her Mama in particular was quite tough on her, there was never any shortage of love. And the unconditional devotion shared between Liesel and her Papa is the heart and soul of the book. Their relationship is one all fathers and grandfathers can inspire to have with their daughters and/or granddaughters. Also in Liesel’s life are a best friend named Rudy and a Jewish refugee named Max. We readers learn much about these two as well and we care for them greatly as the novel moves along.
I should also mention this - the novel takes place in Germany. Nazi Germany....to be precise....in the 1930s and 1940s. So that obviously creates quite a gut-wrenching setting for all the events.
Because it spans so many years, “The Book Thief” can drag a little bit in the latter stages, but not so much to become a bother. Mr. Zusak’s writing is superb throughout. And his story-telling is masterful. So yes, it can be excellent and still drag a bit. Because his words remains wonderful - even though at times, there’s quite a lot of them.
All of the characters are deep and real and flawed and absolutely amazing. This book is certainly for older teen readers and adults. It’s pretty complex with some dark, challenging themes. All in all, I highly recommend it and I’m sure the movie (which is out now) is sensational as well.
Lastly, you should realize that “The Book Thief” is narrated by and written from the perspective of Death himself. But Mr. Zusak gives him a dark, wry sense of humor and a surprisingly sensitive outlook on life. So Death’s point of view is actually a well-executed, unique, enjoyable way to go through the story. However, you do read the book with this constant impending sense of dread because everything is being told to you by Death...so you expect to encounter....a lot of dying. And you will. Yet you’ll also encounter plenty of joy while reading “The Book Thief” and you’ll be delighted to get to know Miss Liesel Meminger and hear her remarkable story.
A final, final thing I'll mention is that after reading this as an eBook, I bought the paperback for Abby as a Christmas gift. So I liked the book well enough to buy it twice. That's high praise!
**long, complex, emotional, a fair amount of death, minimal swearing (mostly in German), some difficult things mentioned like death camps and Jewish persecution, best for mature teens and adults**
So “The Book Thief” was a bit of a grind for me since it was surprisingly long and such a serious read. However, I'm SO glad I stuck with it. Ok....now....finally...on to the review.
This terrific novel spans several years in young Liesel Meminger’s life, covering many events that happen to her and a handful of other characters. Liesel learns, grows, matures and becomes a wonderful young lady. I loved how she craved books and coveted reading and how she ultimately even became a writer. She’s truly a memorable, admirable and inspirational star of the story. I liked how her relationship with her foster Mama and Papa developed over time and though her Mama in particular was quite tough on her, there was never any shortage of love. And the unconditional devotion shared between Liesel and her Papa is the heart and soul of the book. Their relationship is one all fathers and grandfathers can inspire to have with their daughters and/or granddaughters. Also in Liesel’s life are a best friend named Rudy and a Jewish refugee named Max. We readers learn much about these two as well and we care for them greatly as the novel moves along.
I should also mention this - the novel takes place in Germany. Nazi Germany....to be precise....in the 1930s and 1940s. So that obviously creates quite a gut-wrenching setting for all the events.
Because it spans so many years, “The Book Thief” can drag a little bit in the latter stages, but not so much to become a bother. Mr. Zusak’s writing is superb throughout. And his story-telling is masterful. So yes, it can be excellent and still drag a bit. Because his words remains wonderful - even though at times, there’s quite a lot of them.
All of the characters are deep and real and flawed and absolutely amazing. This book is certainly for older teen readers and adults. It’s pretty complex with some dark, challenging themes. All in all, I highly recommend it and I’m sure the movie (which is out now) is sensational as well.
Lastly, you should realize that “The Book Thief” is narrated by and written from the perspective of Death himself. But Mr. Zusak gives him a dark, wry sense of humor and a surprisingly sensitive outlook on life. So Death’s point of view is actually a well-executed, unique, enjoyable way to go through the story. However, you do read the book with this constant impending sense of dread because everything is being told to you by Death...so you expect to encounter....a lot of dying. And you will. Yet you’ll also encounter plenty of joy while reading “The Book Thief” and you’ll be delighted to get to know Miss Liesel Meminger and hear her remarkable story.
A final, final thing I'll mention is that after reading this as an eBook, I bought the paperback for Abby as a Christmas gift. So I liked the book well enough to buy it twice. That's high praise!
**long, complex, emotional, a fair amount of death, minimal swearing (mostly in German), some difficult things mentioned like death camps and Jewish persecution, best for mature teens and adults**