INTRODUCTION

Novel Quickline

In 1939, 10-year-old Liesel Meminger arrives at the Hubermann household as their foster child. Her younger brother has died en route to Molching and it is at his burial that Liesel steals her first book, The Grave Digger’s Handbook. Although Liesel cannot read, she takes the book as a connection to the brother she is leaving behind.

We follow Liesel through the war years and watch as she grows, makes friends, learns to read, steals books and other things, rescues and protects a Jewish person, and records her own story.

Death narrates Liesel’s tale and shares it with the reader because, of all the humans Death has encountered over time, Liesel fascinates him. What Death seeks to unravel is how and why people act as they do during times of horror and hatred. In the process, he discovers the capacity of humanity to shine, even through the despairing clouds of war. Zusak’s book is a unique look at another side of Nazi Germany during the Second World War.

Keys to the Novel

Narration

• The narrative style of this novel is truly unique. While Death has been used before as a commentator in film and in fiction, nowhere does he appear with the warmth, humor, and sensitivity that we see in Zusak’s novel.
• Death, a definite non-human, is humanized in this story. Because he is not a person, Death has no self-interest in the events around him and, therefore, he can and should be objective. His job is to collect souls, no matter who they are or what they’ve done, not to talk about them.
• Yet, here we have Death — the narrator, the tour guide, the scene stealer, and our half-time entertainment. With his natural state of detachment, he qualifies as the key narrator because he has the ultimate view of the unfolding story. Because he always knows what will happen in the future, Death sometimes reveals forthcoming events. (see Foreshadowing, p.51)

  Is Death the most appropriate narrator for this story? Consider how the story would change if one of the other characters were to narrate it, for example, Liesel or Hans.

Perspective

• Death sets out on his journey looking to make sense of the differing perspectives of good and evil that people represent. His search teaches him, as well as us, that these two ideas are never far apart from one another. He discovers that humans have the capacity for both good and evil, and that it is the sequence of their lives that determines which way they lean. The concepts of good and evil sit on a moveable continuum. A person can shift up and down the scale depending on circumstance, motivation, opportunity, and personality. Each character in the novel exemplifies this.
• In addition, Death watches the characters as they alternate from bad to good, from passive to active. While Hans, Rudy, and Alex Steiner each positively demonstrate this point, there are others who disappoint: Hans Junior, Michael Holtzapfel.
• The novel compels us to consider the ideas of perspective and change. It allows us a glimpse into a heretofore little known portrayal of ordinary Germans who tried to stand up to the injustices of the time and who were not complicit in the horror around them. Until fairly recently, the arts have depicted the players in the Holocaust — the victims and the perpetrators — as clear-cut absolutes. But as the decades pass, there are new generations of German children and grandchildren who want to speak out about victims of a different kind.
• Neither Zusak nor Death has love or sympathy for demogogues like Hitler, but they ask questions about how their followers, who are linked inextricably to them, are painted with the same broad brush of color. The novel reminds us that beyond good and evil, beyond black and white, there are shades of grey and other hues to consider. (see Color, p.61)

The Power of Literacy

• One of the central themes running through the novel is the power of language, words, and reading. Zusak ingeniously explores how books can be used for both salvation and destruction. Books, like Hitler’s Mein Kampf, demonstrate how words can be used to promote hatred, but can, unintentionally, also serve to rescue, as they do Max.
• As Liesel learns to read (through Hans) and to interpret and form new ideas (through Max), she becomes a wholly literate person. She becomes not only knowledgeable, but thoughtful as well. In addition, relationships are formed through books: Liesel and Ilsa Hermann, Liesel and Hans, Liesel and Max.
• Throughout the story, Liesel and the reader learn that words carry ideas forward; without words, those ideas fall flat and disappear. We come to understand that books, words, and language depend heavily on the ability of humans to carry their cause. It is the energy of human literacy that gives words their power, for better or worse.
• Liesel’s gift of literacy opens up a whole new world of possibilities for her, and ultimately saves her life.

  Have you experienced the power and influence of words in either a positive or negative way? Discuss these examples.

Author Information

• Markus Zusak was born in 1975 in Sydney, Australia. He is the youngest of four children born to immigrant parents from Germany. Zusak’s mother spent the war years in Munich, and his father, a housepainter, is from Austria. For Zusak, the stories his mother recounted of her childhood in Nazi Germany were a significant influence on this book. They include the following and each appears in the novel:
  • Like Liesel, she was a foster child and never knew her own father.
  • There were examples of small rebellions against the Nazis, including the story of a young boy offering bread to the Jews who were being marched through the streets like cattle.
  • Zusak also heard accounts of Jews being hidden by Germans, descriptions of the effects of Allied bombing on the city, and how the children played sports in the street.
• Zusak remarks that the “world of Germany was in my head the way English is in my head, because of the stories I heard growing up. It was like I could reach for it the same way I can reach for a word to use. ” (Mother Daughter Bookclub) He admits he did not hear about anyone stealing books, although Zusak sheepishly admits to the theft of some school library books when he was younger.
• Zusak’s motivation for writing this kind of story was to put forward a different picture of Nazi Germany, one that is not usually considered in fiction or in the history books.

  We have these images of the straight-marching lines of boys and the 'Heil Hitlers' and this idea that everyone in Germany was in it together. But there still were rebellious children and people who didn't follow the rules and people who hid Jews and other people in their attics. So there's another side of Nazi Germany. (Creagh)

• For Zusak, the truth, set in each of the little stories, emerges from an individual’s larger life story. This is what interests Death as well, and so he tries to find the distinctive human narratives that prove life’s worth. What began as a 100 page novella quickly became a 550 page novel; and, at its essence, is an exploration of the value of human existence.

Writing for the Young Adult Audience

• Zusak’s book of fiction has found itself inadvertently caught between two diverse audiences. While originally intended for young adults, his Australian editor thought it important to share this book with adult readers. In Australia, publishing divisions are closely linked and so the distance between the two age groups is less than it is in North America, where the novel has been classified and is sold as a book for adolescents. The book, originally intended for both sets of patrons, has found varying venues in different countries around the world.
• Zusak argues that there are always books that will transcend categories because they are beloved or classic, citing examples such as To Kill a Mockingbird and Catcher in the Rye. Regardless of where The Book Thief has been categorized, the response has been the same: that of delight for a well written and significant look at a very dark time in our history.
• There are valid reasons for us to consider this book as both young adult and adult literature. While The Book Thief broaches the difficult and frightening subject of death, it also teaches about the relationships between life and death; courage and cowardice; action and inaction. It raises questions for young people to consider before their perspectives are hardened into adult form. Two of his primary examples are the open-minded Liesel juxtaposed with her rigid counterpart, Hans Jr.

  For which readers do you feel this book fits best and why?

• Zusak studied education in university and, in addition to being a school janitor for a while, he taught high school English. In addition to his work in the classroom, Zusak now tours schools and hosts writing workshops for students. Zusak himself began writing at 16 and finished his first manuscript at 18. Before The Book Thief, he wrote and published four other novels, written for adolescents and young adults. Zusak currently lives in Australia with his wife and daughter.
• The movie rights for the book were optioned by Fox in 2006, although there have been no announcements yet about its release date. Zusak’s next novel, Bridge of Clay, will be available in late 2011.
• Bibliography:
  • The Book Thief (2006)
  • Fighting Ruben Wolfe (2001)
  • The Messenger (2002) (published in United States as I Am The Messenger)
  • When Dogs Cry (2001) (published in the United States as Getting the Girl)
  • The Underdog (1999)

• Awards:

The Book Thief

• 2008 Ena Noel Award — the IBBY Australia Ena Noël Encouragement Award for Children's Literature
• 2007 Michael L. Printz Honor book by the Young Adult Library Services Association
• 2006 Kathleen Mitchell Award 2006 (literature)

The Messenger (a.k.a. I Am The Messenger)

• 2006 Michael L. Printz Award Honor book
• 2006 Bulletin Blue Ribbon Book
• 2005 Publishers Weekly Best Books of the Year (Children)
• 2003 Children’s Book Council of Australia Book of the Year Award
• 2003 New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Ethel Turner Prize for Young People's Literature

When Dogs Cry/Getting the Girl

• 2002 Honour Book for Children's Book Council of Australia Book of the Year (Older Children)

Fighting Ruben Wolfe

2001 Honour Book for Children's Book Council of Australia Book of the Year (Older Children)

Shortlisted for the New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Ethel Turner Prize for Young People's Literature