The Book Thief

Markus Zusak's The Book Thief is one of the most fascinating novel I have ever read. It is a novel that I have recommended to numerous people already. The most interesting aspect of the novel is the fact that Death is the narrator. Having a narrator that everyone can recognize is powerful but to also have a narrator that represents darkness and destruction is even more powerful. Death is so likable in The Book Thief, which is not something we are used to as readers and one of the most powerful lines in my opinion is" Five hundred souls. I carried them in my fingers, like suitcases. Or I'd throw them over my shoulder. It was only the children I carried in my arms"(Zusak, pg 336), which shows how sympathetic Death is. The main point of this novel is the German point of view of Hitler and the Nazi's. Zusak uses history along with jaw dropping sentences like "The day had been a great one, and Nazi Germany was a wondrous place" (Zusak, pg.156) to make his point and to keep his readers absorbed in the novel.

Zusak begins his novel by introducing his narrator as Death and the first thing Death does was tell the reader that he is not responsible for, ironically, death but rather collecting the souls. He makes this point again by saying "It probably had more to do with the hurled bombs, thrown down by humans hiding in the clouds" (Zusak, 13) saying who ultimately is responsible for death. Another point that is repeated throughout the novel is the effects of physical features at the time of "Nazi Germany". We are introduced to Liesel Meminger and her "German blond" hair and "dangerous eyes. Dark brown"; Later we are introduced to Rudy, Liesel's best friend, who has beautiful blond hair and "safe" blue eyes, which tells us how important it was to look like what Hitler thought was ideal..


The most important message that comes from The Book Thief is that Germans were not necessarily with the Nazi party. Even those who showed their respect and support did not fully support the cause and called it beautiful "Submission"(Zusak, pg. 63). It is interesting to see how many characters were noticeably against the Nazi party; characters like Hans Huberman and Mr.Steiner to name a few. The message behind this novel is dark and it keeps the memory of the devastation that occurred before and during World War II alive. It is important that readers understand the purpose behind Zusak's bone-chilling novel.