A Powerful Tale in "The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak

The Book Thief
Author:  Markus Zusak
Published:  2005
Publisher:  Random House
Pages:  552
Edition:  Movie Tie In Cover 2013, Trade Paperback
Also contains:  A Reader's Guide, Related Titles, Internet Resources, In His Own Words - A Conversation With Markus Zusak
ISBN  9780385754729

Source:  a copy was given to me by the publisher.  Receipt thereof has no influence over my opinion of this novel nor this review.

It is 1939, Nazi Germany.  The country is holding its breath.  

Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.

By her brother's graveside, Liesel Meminger finds her life changed when she picks up a single object, partially hidden in the snow.  It is The Grave Digger's Handbook, left there by accident, and it is her first act of book thievery.  So begins a love affair with books and words, as Liesel, with the help of her accordion-playing foster father, learns to read.  Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book burnings, the mayor's wife's library, wherever there are books to be found.

But these are dangerous times.  When Liesel's foster family hides a Jewish man in their basement, Liesel's world is both opened up and closed down.

In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time.

My Thoughts:

The Book Thief should be ranked with the popular classics from foregone eras.  A classic has been defined as:  judged over a period of time to be of the highest quality and outstanding of its kind. A work of art of recognized and established value.  The Book Thief is just that and is certainly worthy of a prestigious location on every book lover's bookshelf.

I began The Book Thief the beginning of January as my first book of the year but time constraints necessitated it being put aside until recently when I had the time and opportunity to immerse myself in Liesel's world in Germany pre-war to war era.  Everyone I've spoken with of late has heard from me about this fabulous novel that I was so in love with.  I could hardly put it down and anxiously picked it up at every opportunity, so involved in this incredibly powerful tale.

The Book Thief opens with an introduction by Death as the narrator.  Not a grim reaper, but a being of great empathy and love for those he serves.  At this period of time Death is very busy, the war is a harsh task master and Death exhibits sadness at the loss of so many innocent lives, "For me, the sky was the color of Jews."  (page 349)  "I picked up each soul that day as if it were newly born. I even kissed a few weary, poisoned cheeks ... I watched their love visions and freed them from their fear." (page 350).

The most compelling character is Liesel Meminger.  We meet her as a young girl fresh off the train, passed into the hands of foster parents Hans Huberman and his wife Rosa.  Hans is a wonderful old patient soul with silver eyes and a gift for the accordion while his wife is terse and generous with expletives but beneath the rough exterior she hides a warm heart.  "She was a good woman for a crisis."  Liesel is a feisty personality who suffers nightly from nightmares about her brother's death which she witnessed aboard the train enroute to Molching, home of her foster parents to be.

Her first act of thievery occurs at her brother's graveside where she finds The Gravedigger's Handbook from which Papa (Hans) helps her learn to read as part of a nightly ritual that follows Liesel's nightmares. She has the bug and yearns for books and words.  Her second book is rescued from the ashes of a Nazi book burning and from there the mayor's wife's library falls victim.

Liesel and her best friend Rudy witness firsthand the Nazi regime in action.  The Jewish businesses closed, the people thwarted and paraded through town on their way to concentration camps.  The two friends rebel against the Fuhrer with thievery of food, some of which they drop as pieces of bread ahead of the parades for the prisoners.  One similar act of kindness earned a whipping by a Nazi soldier.

That act of kindness was towards a young man, Max, who had been hidden in the basement of the Hubermans.  Max's father had saved Hans' life in an earlier war, losing his own, and as repayment they hid the young Jewish man until the bombing began and it was no longer safe for any of them.  Max left one day in a tearful goodbye and wasn't seen until the day of the parade.  He was thin and weak from starvation and cruelty at the hands of the soldiers.  A prisoner of war on his way to the camps.

There were many cruelties in that small town in Germany.  A lot for a couple of young kids to witness and it changed them perceptibly.  To read of them in a book initially written for an adult audience in New Zealand and placed in the YA readership here and in the US, one can visualize the horrors as seen through the eyes of the young.  The war influenced their choices and their lives.  This book has been touted as life altering and it can be.  While The Book Thief has been marketed here for a YA audience, it holds appeal for adults as well.  The imagery, the flow of the written word, the effect of it all impresses upon the mind and the heart.  It is a masterpiece that has rightfully earned wide appeal and hearty recommendations.

Highlights from Random House Fall Preview

Last Wednesday I  attended the Random House Fall Preview.  The presenters of the evening, Duncan, Jennifer and Carole (my apologies for not being clear on her name) were dynamic, especially Jennifer!  Due to road construction in the area, it was a bit difficult to maneuver the downtown area to get to the Stanley Milner Library and the parkade and having done so, I arrived a bit too late to see who the author was.

But the remainder of the evening (late afternoon, early evening) was spectacular!  This is the first year that I am aware of them presenting all guests with a pre-packed bag with a selection of three books and one chap-book (the sequel to SECRET).  Amidst the presentation, prizes of t-shirts and other miscellaneous items were awarded for answering a few trivia questions.  All that aside though, the best part of the evening was the presentation itself!

The Top 15 highlights as I see them (not necessarily in this order):

1.  How to Feed a Family by Laura Keogh and Ceri Marsh.  This cookbook is based on the blog "Sweet Potato Chronicles" which is a fun and playful approach to feeding your family.  The book runs along the same concept.

2.  The Son of a Certain Woman by Wayne Johnston.  This novel is the story of a boy, with a large birthmark, born to the town's or even the country's most beautiful woman.  It's a laugh out loud read and a good introduction to the author.

3.  The Once and Future World by J.B. Mackinnon.  This novel will see a major media tour and a major exhibit at the Vancouver Museum based on this book about what nature once was and what it may become.

4.  The Circle by Dave Eggers is for the lovers of social media.  Picture a "Silicon Valley" type work place and a new employee who starts a new job with a minute description of her job but who gets the finger wag from the head of HR when she goes away for the weekend for a family emergency, on her own time mind you, but is not to be found anywhere on social media.  "gasp".   She was "unavailable".  Apparently the biggest sin in this company!

5.  Legends, Icons & Rebels by Robbie Robertson, Jim Guerinot, Sebastion Robertson, and Jared Levine is a books of beautiful frame able photography of legends and icons.  There are four pages per artist and 2 CDs of their music.  Terrific gift for the music lovers.

5.  Longbourn by Jo Baker.  Attention Pride and Prejudice fans!  Here's one told from the point of view of the help, not unlike Downton Abbey.  Celebrate the 200th anniversary of Pride and Prejudice with this perspective.

6.  Eye of Minds by James Dashner.  A new series begins with this novel by the same author of Maze Runner and that series.  Action packed book highly recommended for boys.

7.  Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town by Stephen Leacock.  An October release told in graphic novel form.  You simply must touch this book!

8.  Correspondences by Anne Michaels.  A beautiful gift book that folds out like an accordion featuring the poetry of Anne Michaels and the illustrations of Bernice Einstein.  I put a star by this one as a book I definitely want to add to my collection.

9.  An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth by astronaut Chris Hadfield.  This book will see an enormous nation-wide tour, including Edmonton!!  Hadfield got everyone's attention with his recent trip to space and his satellite communications with various classrooms!  Not only for the space enthusiast, future astronauts, but as an encouragement to pursue your dreams.

10.  Perfect by Rachel Joyce.  Yes, the same author who wrote The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry!  This novel is about perception and how one person's perception can change relationships and alter lives.

11.  This Land Was Made For You and Me (But Mostly Me) by Bruce McCall and David Letterman.  Yes, the one and only David Letterman of late-night television!  This cute book features quirky and crazy cottages and is illustrated by Bruce McCall.  Imagine a cottage on skis!  Indeed!

12.  99 by Al Strachan.  This is the only authorized biography of the great Wayne Gretzky.  Al Strachan has the privilege of being the only writer to have the opportunities to interview Gretzky, getting to know him as few do.

13.  Toxic Toxout by Bruce Laurie and Rick Smith.  All the gross stuff you are taking in, all the toxins in the air and in what we eat, and how to get them out of your body.

14.  The Start Here Diet by Tosca Reno and Billie Fitzpatrick.  This is predominately a memoir of a woman whose life was not going in the right direction, who suffered abuse, and who turned her life around. Tosca shares how she did it and includes five easy tips for diet and exercise.

15.  Hollow City by Ransom Riggs.  From the author of the peculiar novel Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, the story continues with this new novel for YA and adults.

Appealing?  Tell me about it.  Really, do tell.  What interests you of the 15 highlighted here?

It's Official Today: Random House and Penguin Group Have Merged...

“Today, Penguin and Random House officially unite to create the first truly global trade book publishing company. As separate companies, we have long performed outstandingly by every benchmark; as colleagues, we will share and apply our passion for publishing the best books with our enormous experience, creativity, and entrepreneurial drive. Together, we will give our authors unprecedented resources to help them reach global audiences—and we will provide readers with unparalleled diversity and choice for future reading. Connecting authors and readers is, and will be, at the heart of all we strive to accomplish together.”  ~ CEO Markus Dohle http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/press-release/ceo-markus-dohle-announces-penguin-random-house-global-leadership-team

Random House and Penguin Merger Approved in Canada

The merger between Random House and Penguin has been approved in Canada by the Department of Canadian Heritage and the Competition Bureau. The merger, which is expected to be in effect this summer, was announced last fall and has been granted approval in the U.S., Australia and New Zealand.

Penguin Canada provided a press release which stated that upon completion of the merger, Beterlsmann (owner of Random House) will own 53 per cent and Pearson (of Penguin) will own 47 percent of what will be theretofore be known as Penguin Random House, encompassing both companies' publishing assets in Canada, the U.S., the U.K., Australia, New Zealand, India and South Africa, China (formerly Penguin's) and Spain and Latin America (formerly Random House).  

“Pearson and Bertelsmann believe that the combined organisation, the world’s leading consumer publishing company, will have a stronger platform and greater resources to invest in rich content, new digital publishing models and high-growth emerging markets,” the release states.

Will other publishers be following suit?

20 Ways to Make Your Home More Bookish

Imagine books everywhere!  On the shelves, on the snuggly pillows on your couch, even on your chair!  Random House put together an inspirational photo tour with ideas for every book lover!

Here are some of the images from the tour.  To see more, click on photo tour here.

This is Where We Live.....

Indigo Love of Reading Program Puts Books in Schools

Indigo, Chapters and Coles are helping to put books on the shelves of local schools.  Have you visited your children's school library.  So many have so few books, particularly inner city schools.   The following are excerpts from their site:

Three days to launch!
Posted on September 9, 2010
Three days until we kick off Adopt a School in our stores and online!
From Sep 12-Oct 2 we're going to fill school libraries across Canada!

Building bookshelves in your local school


This September, Indigo, Chapters and Coles stores across the country have adopted schools in their communities to help put new books in the library.

Help us meet our goal of putting one new book for every child in to our adopted schools. Find a school near you, donate and spread the word to your friends and family.

Imagine a childhood with no storytelling
No poetry.
No magic.
You don’t have to imagine it.
We have a literacy crisis in our schools now.
To learn what the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation is doing to address the literacy crisis, visit about Love of Reading.
Transform your local school’s library
Books unlock vast worlds of imagination.

Your support can help turn our adopted schools' dreams of having books into a reality.
Put a book into the hands of a child – find a school near you and donate today.

Random House of Canada

Random House of Canada is proud to be the primary publishing partner of the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation Adopt a School program.

We are excited to recognize schools’ and stores’ fundraising efforts with the Random House Book Package Reward which puts even more books into the school libraries helping their children develop a love of reading.

A young booklover's 'Ode to a Book'


"A book is like one million dollars.


A book [is] for my imagination.


Like food for my brain.


The knowledge that they give.


Is like a fantasy to me."

-Student, Ogden Elementary School, Love of Reading grant recipient.

Learn how the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation is helping open a world of possbilities by putting books into the hands of children. Visit Building bookshelves in your local school


http://adoptaschool.loveofreading.org/en_CA/home