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The Book Thief | 
| Author: Markus Zusak
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Category: Book
List Price: $11.99
Buy New: $7.05
You Save: $4.94 (41%)
New (56) Used (24) Collectible (1) from $6.39
Avg. Customer Rating:  442 reviews
Sales Rank: 137
Media: Paperback
Reading Level: Young Adult
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 576
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5.1 x 1.3
ISBN: 0375842209
EAN: 9780375842207
ASIN: 0375842209
Publication Date: September 11, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
It#8217;s just a small story really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery. . . .brbrSet during World War II in Germany, Markus Zusak#8217;s groundbreaking new novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can#8217;t resist#8211;books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau.brbrThis is an unforgettable story about the ability of books to feed the soul.brbrbriFrom the Hardcover edition./i
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| Customer Reviews: Read 437 more reviews...
 Spectacular November 30, 2008
This is the best book I have read in years, and I am an avid reader. There are stunning bits of poetry on nearly every page. The "word pictures" as my 8-year-old calls them are elegant positively evocative of the characters and setting. It was fun to recognize so many German phrases. And Hans is perhaps my favorite hero of fiction. My heart broke reading this book, not just because of tragedies, but because of the kindness and humanity of Hans Hubermann. I have recommended this book to everybody I know, my husband loved it, and I know that I will read it again.
 Adult literature in the young adult section. November 29, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is an unusual book. The sentence structure, the frequent bold print announcements, and the copious German language profanity were quite unexpected. The early chapters were a bit slow, and the perspective was so strange that it took me a while to get used to it. This novel did not hold my attention unfailingly, but in the end I was glad that I read the whole thing. It is a wonderful and worthwhile story.br /br /I became fond of Liesel, papa and Rudy. They are fully believable, fully human characters. The author writes that they were the first characters he actually missed when the writing was done. I certainly miss them since I finished the story. Their love for each other was a wonderful thing to experience. The feelings between Liesel and Max were especially poignant. Zusak describes them in a realistic and heart wrenching way.br /br /The choice of death as the narrator gave the book a unique flavor. While sergeant death is actually quite morbid at times, he or she is a sympathetic and understanding observer of human nature. In the early chapters I found this narrator to be a little too judgmental. I thought that some characters were typecast before I had a chance to know them. However, as the book progresses, these characters are revealed in more complex and realistic fashion. Zusak is a capable writer.br /
The Book Theif!! November 25, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
By the end of this book i was Sobing like a baby!! and yes that is a good thing! i read books like no tommarrow but there are only a few which i can truly say are a work of art that all my friends should read! when i got done with this book i imidiently called my friend and barrowed them the book. All in All 10 outta 10
The Book Thief November 24, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
An interesting take on the Holocaust, with Death taking a staring and sympathetic role. A young girl without family is taken in by a couple who become her only mother and father. Her interactions with the children of the town and its adults, especially the mayor's wife, shows a maturity beyond her years. br /br /She arrives at her new home with a book about grave digging that she has retrieved from the cemetery where her brother was buried. Not being able to read the book her new father teaches her to read. This occurs nightly when she awakens after having nightmares and he spends the nights in her room to comfort her. br / br /The horror of the Holocaust becomes real when a young Jewish man comes to their house to hide. The two become friends and reading and writing becomes integral to both of them as they seek some sense out of the disaster happening around them.br /br /Over time she pilfers more books, most of all from the Mayor's library with the tacit approval of his wife, who suffers from the death of her son in the previous war.br /br /The book offers a somewhat sympathetic portrayal of German townspeople caught up in the war and the extermination of the Jews. Some, including her father, are sickened by what they see and try to help but are ostracized and sent to fight in the war. Others caught up in the government propaganda against the Jews show how easy it is to debase their own humanity.br /br /I do recommend the book, it's written for the young adult audience but older readers would find much to value in it as well.br /
Well Crafted Read November 23, 2008
This book is awesome. The author used a unique style to tell the story that I found very enjoyable. He has a beautiful command of the language. The story is fascinating, both heartwarming and heartbreaking, and insightful. It's good choice for a book club and for teenagers.
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