The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Reading The book thief was like watching somebody write a beautiful story and then they started erasing it. And now I’m looking at scars etched in paper with lead rubbed off.

The Book Thief written by Markus Zusak and published in 2005 is story of a little 10-yr old girl named Liesel, narrated by death in Germany during World War II.

The story starts with Liesel’s brother dying when her mother was taking both the kids to give to a foster family. This death gives her nightmares throughout the story.

Liesel steals her first book (of many) when they were burying her brother. So begins the life and journey of book thief.

The narrator focuses on her new life, with new set of parents and new friends, her love for reading books and eventually writing, and uncontrollable urge of stealing books, intentionally dilutes the tragedies of war, until it reaches to Liesel’s town.

After that the story is cut short. I wish there was more. If I read 500+ pages I wouldn’t mind reading a 100 more to get a clear picture of what happens to Liesel after the biggest tragedy.

When I’m reading a book, I follow narrator’s and the main character’s pace. And every book has different way of rolling out the story. If you are looking for a “twist” or “climax” in this story you won’t find one. And I don’t mind the absence of one big reveal or turning point unless I’m reading thriller/suspense genre.

This is all about Death (as an individual character) doing its job and following Liesel’s life story.

I loved and enjoyed every page of this book, I was gripped from first page to last.

Witty humor, brilliant analogies, raw yet relatable expressions, and a very genuine story.

I literally ran out of tags because there was so much I would love to revisit.

It’s a great book. But I don’t know if it’s going to be everybody’s cup of tea for following reasons:

• There are no surprises/turning points/big reveals (something I read people complaining about in reviews)
• It’s lengthy. If you already don’t have time to dedicate to a 500+ pages book, you will stop enjoying it after 200 pages.
• It’s not a happy book, well first half kinda is but the rest is a tear-jerker.

My only problem:

• Liesel’s story ended abruptly. I wanted to read a little more. (in my honest opinion)

One special reason why you should read it:

• I haven’t read another story narrated by death itself in an organic flow. You can tell it’s death not an alien or something lol

I loved The Book Thief. It left me with a little heartache, as it was meant to be.

I will never forget Liesel…and Rudy…

And Papa…

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