Title of the book: The Book Thief
Author: Markus Zusak
No. of pages: 550 pages
Genre of book: Historical Fiction
Date: December 17th, 2013
Name: Diana Leyva
"They say that war is death's best friend, but I must offer you a different point of view on that one. To me, war is like the new boss who expects the impossible. He stands over your shoulder repeating one thin, incessantly: 'Get it done, get it done.' So you work harder. You get the job done. The boss, however, does not thank you. He asks for more. (Zusak, 309)."
People die every day, however, from 1939 to 1945 Death was busier than usual. In "The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak, we take a look at Death from a different perspective. A perspective we are not that familiar with. We also listen to Death narrate a story about a German girl living in Nazi Germany.
Liesel Meminger was nine years-old when she moved in with her foster parents. Despite Liesel being a nine year-old, she doesn't know how to write nor read. The desire to read and understand the power of words pushes Liesel to ask her foster dad, Hans Hubermann, for help. This desire grows and pushes Liesel further. She starts stealing books. I consider this novel one of the best literary pieces I've ever read, this novel didn't fail to capture my attention since it has such an unusual yet fascinating content. The introduction of Death as the narrator of the story and the way he introduced Liesel Meminger, the verisimilitude of the plot, and the messages this novel delivers were extremely important subjects to me.
When Death introduces himself he tells us a little about himself "I most definitely can be cheerful. I can be amiable. Agreeable.