The Book Thief was one of the last books I read back in 2006, and one of my favourites for the year. The book is narrated by Death – not Terry Pratchett’s kind of Death, though the similarities are there: the bleak humour and the tendancy to be both baffled by humans, and compassionate towards them.
Death tells the story of Lisel, a young girl whom he first meets at the death of her brother, and crosses paths with again as she and her foster parents shelter a Jew in a small town near Munich during World War II; part of the way she copes is by becoming the book thief of the title. It is a simple story; it is a complex story. It is beautifully written and incredibly powerful, especially because of the detached voice of the omnipotent narrator – Death knows who dies, and he tells you, fairly early on, which only serves to attach you more strongly to the characters.
One scene stands out strongly for me: when Liesal and Max, the Jew her foster-family protected, see each other again, he now a prisoner being marched through her town. This scene is based on a true incident told to Zusak by his mother, and it is at the heart of the story.
Zusak has written award-winning children’s fiction, and this was his adult debut. His website is here.
Interested? Buy it from Fishpond.com.au
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