Books

Narrated by Death, Markus Zusak's groundbreaking new novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a young foster girl living outside of Munich in Nazi Germany. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she discovers something she can't resist -- books. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor's wife's library, wherever they are to be found.

With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, Liesel 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.

Markus Zusak, award-winning author of I Am the Messenger, has crafted an unforgettable novel about the ability of books to feed the soul.

I picked this one right up off the shelf at the bookstore. I cannot say exactly what it was that drew me to the book, maybe it was the cover art. I had not heard anything about it so all I had to go on was the synopsis provided on the inside flap(s) of the book.

I have a strange relationship with books that is shared by many readers. There is comfort, nay, magic in not just the words on the pages, but also the smell of the ink and feel of the binding. I wanted to read a story about a young girl who had this same relationship, but in a different time and place. Her circumstances were obviously much more extreme than my mundane life in Suburbia, but I think you will realize that I was not trying to make an apples to apples comparison.

A book written about a young girl will probably have the feel of a book intended for a young-adult audience most of the time. The Book Thief was so centered around the intimate details of the young girl's life that I was not at all surprised that the writing often took form of fiction intended for young adults. I was not surprised, but I was disappointed. A story set in and written about Nazi Germany with as much detail as The Book Thief provided, I would figure to be over the heads of a young-adult audience. There were so many times that the reading would lapse into the young-adult and it would be harsh language or a particularly grown-up, profound concept that would convince me the book is actually adult fiction.

The book is, in fact, listed for young adults. As described above, this comes as no surprise from the writing, but does from the subject matter. I think a young adult could enjoy the book, but he/she would simply not realize there is much more depth contained within the pages. I know I am generalizing, but I don't think the majority of younger readers would fully appreciate the book.

If a few harsh words mean you won't let your kid read it, so be it. If a few sections geared a little too heavily towards a younger audience will prevent you from reading it, so be it as well. If you can get over those hurdles, I do recommend this book to everyone. The book was beautifully compassionate. It dealt with interpersonal relationships under such incredible circumstances and shapes the story through a completely fascinating set of eyes.

I have no idea how the author came up with the idea to write a story with Death as the narrator, but my hat is off to him for what I consider a 100% success in doing so.

The book really ended up being all I could hope for. It was the young-adult crutch that keeps The Book Thief from being a great book, but it was certainly worth the read.

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