The Book Thief
The
Book Thief is a historical
novel by Australian author Markus
Zusak and is his most popular work. Published in 2005, The Book Thief
became an international bestseller and was translated into 63 languages and
sold 16 million copies. It was adapted into a 2013 feature film of the same name.
Plot
Narrated
by Death, who over the course of the book proves to be a morose yet caring
character, the plot follows Liesel Meminger as she comes of age in Nazi Germany
during WWII. After the death of her younger brother on a train to the fictional
town of Molching, Germany on the outskirts of Munich, Liesel arrives at the home of her new foster parents, Hans
and Rosa Hubermann, distraught and withdrawn. During her time there, she is
exposed to the horrors of the Nazi
regime, caught between the innocence of
childhood and the maturity demanded by her destructive surroundings. As the
political situation in Germany deteriorates, her foster parents conceal a
Jewish fist-fighter named Max Vandenburg. Hans, who has developed a close
relationship with Liesel, teaches her to read, first in her bedroom, then in
the basement. Recognizing the power of writing and sharing the written word, Liesel
not only begins to steal books that the Nazi party is looking to destroy, but
also writes her own story, and shares the power of language with Max. Through
collecting laundry for her foster mother, she also begins a relationship with
the mayor's wife, Ilsa Hermann, who allows her to first read books in her
library, and later, to steal them.
One
day, as a group of Jewish prisoners is led through town towards Dachau Concentration Camp, Hans offers one particularly weak man a piece of bread,
drawing the ire of others in the town. Max leaves the Hubermanns' home soon
after out of fear that Hans' act will draw suspicion on the Hubernmanns
household and their activities. Eventually, as punishment for this act, Hans'
long-withheld application to join the NSDAP is approved and he is drafted into
the army, cleaning up the aftermath of air raids on the German home front. A
while later, Liesel sees Max among a group of prisoners and joins him in the
march, ignoring a soldier's order to step away and getting whipped as
punishment.
After
Hans' returns home, bombs fall on Liesel's street in Molching, killing every
one of her friends, family, and neighbors. Liesel, working on her manuscript in
the basement at the time of the raid, is the sole survivor. The workers
searching for survivors and cleaning up the scene take Liesel's manuscript
along with the rubble, but Death saves it. Devastated, Liesel is taken in by the
Hermanns and refuses to clean the ashes off herself until she walks into the
river where Rudy saved a book before, saying her final goodbyes to him. In
1945, Liesel works in the tailor shop owned by Rudy's father when Max enters.
They have an emotional reunion.
Many
years later, "just yesterday", Liesel dies as an old woman in the
suburbs of Sydney,
with a family and many friends, but has never forgotten Hans, Rosa, Rudy, and
her brother. When Death collects her soul, he gives her the manuscript she lost
in the bombing. She asks him if he read it and Death says yes. She asks him if
he understood it, but Death is confused and unable to understand the duality of
humanity. Death's last words are for both Liesel and the reader: "I am
haunted by humans."
Characters
Death
Death,
the collector of souls, arrayed in any or all the world's colors when it comes,
narrates the story of a young girl coming of age during the horrific times of Nazi
Germany and World
War II. To the reader, Death insists that
it "most definitely can be cheerful", even affable, but also
relates that it most certainly cannot be nice. And sometimes Death is
"compelled" to take action in sympathy with the human story. Death
sees the colours around him before he sees anything else. The story is told
from his point of view, over the three times he sees the main character Liesel
Meminger.
Liesel Meminger
The
protagonist of the story is an adopted girl on the verge of adolescence, with
blonde hair. Her eyes, however, are brown. She is fostered by the Hubermanns
after her biological father "abandons" their family due to being a Communist, her brother dies, and her mother is forced to send her to
a foster home to avoid Nazi persecution. Liesel is the "book thief"
referred to in the title because Liesel is fascinated by the power of words.
Liesel stole books from a grave digger, a bonfire and the mayor's wife, Ilsa
Herman.
Hans Hubermann (Papa)
Liesel's
foster father and husband of Rosa, Hans is a former German soldier during the
First World War, accordion player, and painter. He develops a close and loving
relationship with Liesel, and becomes a main source of strength and support for
her. He, like Liesel, doesn't have much experience with reading. Together, the
two help each other with reading and write all the words they learn on a wall
in the basement. He helps Max because Max's father saved Hans in the First
World War.
Rosa Hubermann (Mama)
Rosa
is Liesel's sharp-tongued foster mother. She has a "wardrobe" build
and a displeased face, brown-grey tightly-cinched hair often tied up in a bun,
and "chlorinated" eyes. Despite her temper, she is a loving wife to
Hans and mother to Liesel. To supplement the household income, she does washing
and ironing for five of the wealthier households in Molching. When she was
introduced to Max the reader sees her soft side.
Rudy Steiner
Liesel's
neighbor, Rudy, has bony legs, blue eyes, lemon-colored hair and a penchant for
getting in the middle of situations when he shouldn't. Despite having the
appearance of an archetypal German, he does not directly support the Nazis. As
a member of a relatively poor household with six children, Rudy is habitually
hungry. He is known throughout the neighborhood because of the "Jesse
Owens incident", in which he colored
himself black with charcoal one night and ran one hundred meters at the local
sports field. He is academically and athletically gifted, which attracts the
attention of Nazi Party officials, leading to an attempted recruitment. His
lack of support for the Nazi party becomes problematic as the story progresses.
Rudy becomes Liesel's best friend and falls in love with her, always trying to
get a kiss out of her.[1]
Max Vandenburg
A
Jewish fist-fighter who takes refuge from the Nazi regime in the Hubermann's
basement. He is the son of a WWI German soldier who fought alongside Hans
Hubermann, and the two developed a close friendship during the war. He has
brown, feather-like hair and swampy brown eyes. During the Nazi reign of
terror, Hans agrees to shelter Max and hide him from the Nazi party. During his
stay at the Hubermanns' house, Max befriends Liesel, because of their shared
affinity for words. He writes two books for her and presents her with a
sketchbook that contains his life story, which helps Liesel to develop as a
writer and reader, which, in turn, saves her life from the bombs falling on
her. [1]
Ilsa Hermann
The
wife of the mayor of Molching who employs Rosa Hubermann. She fell into a
depression after the death of her only son in the Great War. Ilsa allows Liesel
to visit, read and steal books in her personal library. She also gives Liesel a
little black book, which leads Liesel to write her own story, "The Book
Thief".[1]
Werner Meminger
Liesel's
little brother, who died suddenly on the train with his mother and sister,
while being transported to their foster parents. His death is what allowed the
first book to be stolen, a gravedigger's manual dropped by a young boy learning
to work in the cemetery. He died by coughing blood, corroded brown in colour.[1]
Paula Meminger (Liesel's Mother)
Liesel's
mother is only mentioned in the story a few times. Liesel's father was taken
away by the Nazis prior to the novel starting because he was a Communist, and
the reason her mother – Paula Meminger - was taking both her children to foster
care was to save them from Nazi persecution. For a while Liesel writes letters
to her mother thinking there is a chance she is still alive. Like Liesel's
father, Liesel's mother dies, but Liesel eventually realizes her mother gave
her away to protect her.[1]
Themes
Mortality
The
book is introduced by the character/narrator Death, which underlines that mortality is very present in the
lives of each character. Throughout the novel, the deaths of prominent
characters reaffirm the presence of mortality. Because the novel takes place
during World War II,
death and genocide
are nearly omnipresent in the novel.
Death
is presented in a manner that is less distant and threatening. Because Death
narrates and explains the reasons behind each character's destruction, as well
as explains how he feels that he must take the life of each character, Death is
given a sense of care rather than fear. At one point, Death states "even
death has a heart," which reaffirms that there is a care present in the
concept of death and dying.[2]
Language, reading and writing
Throughout
the novel, language,
reading and writing
are presented as symbolic elements of expression and freedom. They provide
identity and personal liberation to those characters who have, or who gain, the
power of literacy: "the true power of words". And they provide a
framework for Liesel's coming of age. At the beginning of the story shortly
after her brother's funeral, Liesel finds a book in the snow, one she is unable
to read. Under tutelage by her foster father Hans, she slowly learns to read
and write. By the end of the novel, her character arc is largely defined by her
progress in reading and writing. The development of Liesel's literacy mirrors
her physical growth and maturing over the course of the story.
Literacy
skills and vernacular speech also serve as social markers. Wealthy citizens in
the story are often portrayed as literate, as owning books and even their own
libraries, while the poor are illiterate and do not own books. Rosa Huberman's
abrasive and oft-times scatological speech towards her family and others is
emblematic of the despairing lives of the poorer classes.
The
Nazi burning of books in the story represents evil incarnate. Symbolically,
Liesel's repeated rescues of books from Nazi bonfires represent her reclaiming
of freedom and her resistance to being controlled by the all-pervasive state.[2]
Love
In
the midst of the damage that war, death, and loss have caused Liesel and the
other characters in the book, love is seen as an agent of change and freedom as
love is the only way of forming a family where the real sovereign[clarification needed] exists.
Liesel overcomes her traumas by learning to love and be loved by her foster
family and her friends. In the beginning of the novel, Liesel is traumatized
not only by the death of her brother and her separation from her only family,
but also by the larger issues of war-torn Germany and the destruction wrought
by the Nazi party. As Liesel's foster father Hans develops a relationship with
her, this relationship helps create healing and growth. This pattern is
reflected in the relational dynamic between the Hubermann family and Max. In a
society ruled by governmental policies that presume to stand in judgment of who
is truly human, the Hubermanns' relationship with Max defies the Nazi regime.
Further, the love that Max and Liesel develop through their friendship creates
a strong contrast to the fascist hate in the backdrop of the story.
The
theme of love also intertwines with the themes of identity and language/reading
because all of these themes have the purpose of providing freedom and power in
the midst of chaos and control.[2]
Recognition
- 2006: Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best Book (South East Asia & South Pacific)
- 2006: School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
- 2006: Daniel Elliott Peace Award
- 2006: Publishers Weekly Best Children's Book of the Year
- 2006: National Jewish Book Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature[3][4]
- 2006: Bulletin Blue Ribbon Book[5]
- 2007: Michael L. Printz Honor Book.[6] The Printz award is given to the best book for teens, based only on the quality of the writing.
- 2007: Book Sense Book of the Year Award for Children's Literature
- 2007: Sydney Taylor Book Award for the best in Jewish children's and YA literature
Film adaptation
Main article: The Book Thief (film)
A
film adaptation was released on 8 November 2013.[7] It was directed by Brian
Percival. Michael
Petroni wrote the script. Starring Geoffrey
Rush and Emily
Watson as Hans and Rosa Hubermann, Ben
Schnetzer as Max Vandenburg, Nico
Liersch as Rudy Steiner, and Sophie
Nélisse as Liesel Meminger. John
Williams wrote the music soundtrack.[8][9] Much of the movie was filmed in Görlitz,
Germany.
References
· · "Michael
L. Printz Winners and Honor Books". American Library Association. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
· · "John
Williams to Score 'The Book Thief' – Film Music Reporter". filmmusicreporter.com. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
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