THE BOOK THIEF BY MARKUS ZUSAK
THE BOOK THIEF
BY MARKUS ZUSAK
Am I writing a
review? Or a summary? A sorta blurb even? I honestly don’t know. I want to leave it
to you to decide.
There are books you
enjoy. There are books you relate to. Then, there are books you want to experience;
or get as close to that experience as you can by reading and you enjoy them and
possibly relate with them too. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is definitely one
of those books. It is also the first historical fiction that I picked and I’m
glad I did so. It is a book which in my opinion everyone should read at least
once in their life.
HERE IS A SMALL FACT
You are going to die.
That seems like a
really macabre line to start this with. But I just couldn't resist putting it
up here considering this is what the book actually starts with. You ask why?
Because it's true. And also because the narrator of this book is
"DEATH" himself. So...
HERE IS ANOTHER SMALL
FACT
When DEATH himself
tells you a story, you have to listen.
…
It is 1939 Nazi Germany.
The atmosphere stinks of DEATH. He's busy and he's about to get busier in the
coming years. He says he first notices the colors of the sky whenever he
collects a soul. But Red, White, and Black are the ones that haunt him the most
(Yes, these are such times that death feels haunted too - haunted by humans). Why Red, White,
and Black specifically?
There is a little
girl named Liesel Meminger who particularly has his attention. She's not dying
if you're thinking so. It's just that DEATH feels like she can see him while no
one else can. She seems to be impossibly fascinated by BOOKS. He visits her
three times before the final one. And it's her story in particular that he
wants to tell. AND BOY! DOES HE HAVE A STORY TO TELL?
It is 1939 Nazi
Germany. The atmosphere stinks of DEATH. A nine year old Liesel Meminger
is travelling with her biological mother and little brother (who is sick) to
their foster parents. It is cold. That's when she sees him (or at least he
thinks so) for the first time, looming above her little brother, to take him to
the afterlife. He's dead and then he's buried. And that's when and where the
illustrious career of The Book Thief starts. That's when and where she steals
her first book (Which book?) even though she doesn’t know how to read. At
least not yet.
She’s brought to her
new parents’ at 33rd Himmel Street near Munich, Germany. Hans and Rosa Huberman.
She learns to love them and call them Papa and Mama. They aren’t particularly
rich. Hans is a painter (and an accordionist) and Rosa helps run the household
by doing laundry, but her customers are dwindling by the day – the side effects
of war. She meets her best friend (or her only friend) Rudy Steiner. She learns
to read and write. She steals more books. And despite all the hardships,
life is good. Perfect actually. But it’s not meant to be so always, is it?
It is 1941 Nazi Germany.
The atmosphere stinks of DEATH. Even more. Anti-semitism is on the rise. Here
is what happens.:
One late night a
scared, exhausted and miserable looking Jewish fist-fighter knocks on 33rd
Himmel Street. (Who?)
The life of Liesel
Meminger is changed forever. (How?)
The Hubermans let the
Jew in and hide him. (Why?)
But hiding and aiding
a Jew isn’t something that would be regarded very highly in 1941 Nazi Germany, is
it? The Jew starts living with them. And consequently the Hubermans’ lives
change too. Again, despite more hardships, life is still good if not perfect. AND
THEN, THE BOMBS BEGIN TO FALL!
…
So, you see what I’m
up to here?
QUESTIONS! QUESTIONS!
I’m trying to build
your curiosity. I’m giving you a glimpse so you can long for the whole view. I’m
lining up the crumbs – making a trail - so you can follow it to the bookstore
and grab this beautiful piece of work. Because there are books you adore so
much that you want others to adore it too. You want others to share the same moments
of joy, excitement, tears, or anger. You want others to experience what you
experienced.
I’m not allowed to
tell the whole story here, obviously. I think I’ve already told you enough. I’m
telling you that there are things in it that’s for you to find out. Things that
you have to find out. Things that you should find out. Things that I want you to find out.
With an ingenious
perspective of death, this story is masterfully written and is sure to stick
with you for life. So go and grab it. Ready your coffee and slouch in your
couch. Read it whole and maybe then you'll understand why I wrote this how I wrote this. Then come back and tell me. Is this a review? Or a
summary? A sorta blurb even?
Tell me. What do you think?
Am I writing a
review? Or a summary? A sorta blurb even? I honestly don’t know. I want to leave it
to you to decide.
There are books you
enjoy. There are books you relate to. Then, there are books you want to experience;
or get as close to that experience as you can by reading and you enjoy them and
possibly relate with them too. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is definitely one
of those books. It is also the first historical fiction that I picked and I’m
glad I did so. It is a book which in my opinion everyone should read at least
once in their life.
HERE IS A SMALL FACT
You are going to die.
That seems like a
really macabre line to start this with. But I just couldn't resist putting it
up here considering this is what the book actually starts with. You ask why?
Because it's true. And also because the narrator of this book is
"DEATH" himself. So...
HERE IS ANOTHER SMALL
FACT
When DEATH himself
tells you a story, you have to listen.
…
It is 1939 Nazi Germany.
The atmosphere stinks of DEATH. He's busy and he's about to get busier in the
coming years. He says he first notices the colors of the sky whenever he
collects a soul. But Red, White, and Black are the ones that haunt him the most
(Yes, these are such times that death feels haunted too - haunted by humans). Why Red, White,
and Black specifically?
There is a little
girl named Liesel Meminger who particularly has his attention. She's not dying
if you're thinking so. It's just that DEATH feels like she can see him while no
one else can. She seems to be impossibly fascinated by BOOKS. He visits her
three times before the final one. And it's her story in particular that he
wants to tell. AND BOY! DOES HE HAVE A STORY TO TELL?
It is 1939 Nazi
Germany. The atmosphere stinks of DEATH. A nine year old Liesel Meminger
is travelling with her biological mother and little brother (who is sick) to
their foster parents. It is cold. That's when she sees him (or at least he
thinks so) for the first time, looming above her little brother, to take him to
the afterlife. He's dead and then he's buried. And that's when and where the
illustrious career of The Book Thief starts. That's when and where she steals
her first book (Which book?) even though she doesn’t know how to read. At
least not yet.
She’s brought to her
new parents’ at 33rd Himmel Street near Munich, Germany. Hans and Rosa Huberman.
She learns to love them and call them Papa and Mama. They aren’t particularly
rich. Hans is a painter (and an accordionist) and Rosa helps run the household
by doing laundry, but her customers are dwindling by the day – the side effects
of war. She meets her best friend (or her only friend) Rudy Steiner. She learns
to read and write. She steals more books. And despite all the hardships,
life is good. Perfect actually. But it’s not meant to be so always, is it?
It is 1941 Nazi Germany. The atmosphere stinks of DEATH. Even more. Anti-semitism is on the rise. Here is what happens.:
One late night a
scared, exhausted and miserable looking Jewish fist-fighter knocks on 33rd
Himmel Street. (Who?)
The life of Liesel
Meminger is changed forever. (How?)
The Hubermans let the
Jew in and hide him. (Why?)
But hiding and aiding
a Jew isn’t something that would be regarded very highly in 1941 Nazi Germany, is
it? The Jew starts living with them. And consequently the Hubermans’ lives
change too. Again, despite more hardships, life is still good if not perfect. AND
THEN, THE BOMBS BEGIN TO FALL!
…
So, you see what I’m
up to here?
QUESTIONS! QUESTIONS!
I’m trying to build
your curiosity. I’m giving you a glimpse so you can long for the whole view. I’m
lining up the crumbs – making a trail - so you can follow it to the bookstore
and grab this beautiful piece of work. Because there are books you adore so
much that you want others to adore it too. You want others to share the same moments
of joy, excitement, tears, or anger. You want others to experience what you
experienced.
I’m not allowed to
tell the whole story here, obviously. I think I’ve already told you enough. I’m
telling you that there are things in it that’s for you to find out. Things that
you have to find out. Things that you should find out. Things that I want you to find out.
With an ingenious
perspective of death, this story is masterfully written and is sure to stick
with you for life. So go and grab it. Ready your coffee and slouch in your
couch. Read it whole and maybe then you'll understand why I wrote this how I wrote this. Then come back and tell me. Is this a review? Or a
summary? A sorta blurb even?
Tell me. What do you think?
Love this book and I am happy that you suggested me to read this book.
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