The Book Thief – Markus Zusak
I’ll start at the beginning. My best pal Jade first recommended The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak waaaay before Christmas. When she explained the book’s unique trait – it is written by death – I was intrigued but not enough to rush out and buy it.
When I was browsing in Waterstones a few weeks ago I happened to walk past the book and thought I would give it a chance. I spent the last of my Waterstones voucher on it, so it needed to be good. And it was.
I will admit I was not convinced at first. For the first fifty pages I was not sure if I could continue and I think I know why. I have never come across a book which has been written by such an inanimate thing. It was so far removed from anything I had read that it took a bit of getting used to. I also did not gain any sort of connect with the main character Liesel to begin with.
Somewhere along the line all that changed and I was completely hooked.
The Book Thief is set in Nazi Germany and chronicles the life of Liesel Meminger who is sent to live with a foster family. In a world where everyone is expected to be the same Liesel’s distinguishing feature is that she steals books. When she first arrives at her foster family’s home she cannot read or write but her beloved Papa spends every single night by her side whilst she learns to read and discovers new sensations and words. Her ability to read and write provides comfort to her and her neighbours and has dramatic consequences by the end of the novel.
There is so much more to Zusak’s book than this however I do not want to spoil anything if you have not read it yet.
The relationship Zusak creates between the characters is beautiful, it was so real and sincere, especially that between Liesel and her Papa as well as her friendship with Rudy. He creates moments of tenderness and adoration in a world full of hate and death.
I know there is a lot of press surrounding the novel and its subsequent film release but believe the hype! I can honestly say it is one of the best books I have ever read.
The Book Thief is one of those novels that you always keep on your book shelf – a text which has universal appeal and will stand the test of time. It is extraordinary and you need to read it.