“The Book Thief” by Markus Zusak is narrated by death and begins when Liesel’s brother dies on a train with her and her mother. At her brother’s burial, she steals her first book, “The Grave Digger’s Handbook” and soon after is separated from her mother and sent to live with foster parents, Hans and Rosa Hubermann, in Molching, where the majority of the book takes place. At school, Liesel is teased because she can’t read so Hans teaches her to read when she wakes up from her frequent nightmares about her brother’s death. Hans is a painter and an accordion player and also plays the accordion for her after her nightmares. Liesel grows very close with Hans and also becomes close friends with her neighbor Rudy Steiner who constantly asks her to …show more content…
Max uses Mein Kampf as a kind of cover so people wouldn’t suspect that he was a Jew and he escapes to the Hubermann’s house as Hans promised to help the Vandenburg’s if they ever needed it as he was friends with Max’s father in the war and Max’s father saved Hans’ life. Liesel is curious but also scared of Max at first but they bond over the fact that they both have nightmares, have lost their families and are both “fist-fighters” Since Max is always hiding in the basement, Liesel begins to describe the weather to him and brought him snow where they had a snowball fight and built a snowman with Hans and Rosa. Soon after, Max falls ill and she brings him 13 presents, hoping that he will wake up and reads to him every morning and night. Max also begins to share stories with Liesel and for her birthday makes her a book called “The Standover Man” which is about his life and journey. Max also begins to have daydreams where he fights Hitler and Hitler always uses his words to excite the crowd and uses them as a weapon. Liesel and Rudy also begin to steal food with a group of …show more content…
She finally tells Rudy about Max after the incident. Liesel returns to Ilsa Hermann’s library and destroys a book because she becomes angry with how words can bring so much hate and then she writes and apology to Mrs. Hermann. Mrs. Hermann comes to Liesel’s house a few days later and gives her a journal so she can write her own story. One day while she was writing in her journal in the basement, an air raid happens and Liesel is the only survivor because she was safe in the basement. She is saved by the LSE and kisses Rudy’s dead lips and says goodbye to her Mama and Papa. She is taken by the mayor and his wife and when Alex Steiner comes back from the war, him and Liesel spend a lot of time together. Eventually, Max shows up and they have a bittersweet
Characters of Himmel Street which support those who have been marginalized by society encounter love for humanity as they share a form of love with the individual they are comforting. Liesel Meminger is a character on Himmel street that continually comforts others, which is noticeable in the way she treats the character Max Vandenburg who has been abused by societal ideologies. It is evident that Liesel supports Max when she obtains gifts for him, while he is ill and concealing from the Nazis, “Whenever she
Liesel yearns to discover the power of words through reading books. Throughout the story, she repeatedly steals books to grasp more information. It all starts with The Gravediggers Manuel; Liesel attains this book the day that her brother dies, while he is being buried by the gravediggers. Liesel pilfers this book from the gravediggers because the book will symbolize her remembrance of her brother, Werner. This also will start the beginning of her acrimony for the Fuhrer, because Liesel discovers that he is answerable for his death.
In The Book Thief, author Markus Zusak tells the tragic story of Liesel Meminger and her experiences in 1939 Nazi Germany. Zuzak incorporates compelling literary devices such as toe curling foreshadowing, personification, and vivid imagery in the form of simile and metaphors to grasp the readers’ interest. Zusak’s use of various literary devices helps to deepen the text and morals of the story, and makes the dramatic historical novel nearly impossible to put down.
Hans can’t help to offer a piece of bread to one of the prisoners and is beaten along with the prisoner for this act of nobility. He is frightened that the Nazi will search his house and discover Max. That same night Max leaves Himmel Street. Hans is sent to war as his punishment and Alex Steiner is also conscripted for not permitting Rudy be part of a special training school. With Hans and Max gone, Liesel does her best to go on. She reads to the inhabitants of Himmel Street in the bomb shelter during air raids, robs food with Rudy, and helps Rosa who is devastated by Hans’s departure. The last book she steals is called “The Last Human Stranger” at this point she is frustrated and
Mark of the Thief is a book written by Jennifer A. Nielsen. This book is the first in the “Mark of the Thief” trilogy and is set in ancient Rome around the year 400 CE. The story itself takes place primarily in the city of Rome and the mines south of Rome where the story begins.
Unbeknownst to Liesel, Max secretly writes two graphic stories for her, enshrining the power of words, rewarding her developing power of words and giving her strength to write her own words. The Standover Man; the first of the two complete illustrated stories, encapsulates Max’s feelings towards Liesel and their developing friendship. Within the context of the story, Max is depicted as a bird- like creature who fears ‘men standing over’ him. His fear may be associated with the events of his life that have left him vulnerable, for example, losing his father at a young age and losing a fist fight to a friend. As the story progresses, it becomes evident that Liesel’s presence provides comfort to Max, as he begins to realise that ‘the best standover man [he’s] ever known is not a man at all’, but is Liesel; a companion who is ultimately able to redefine Max’s preconceived notion of ‘the standover man’, as being someone associated with abandonment and antagonism to a compassionate figure that he need not fear. The second story, The Word Shaker, written by Max, and created with the assistance of the Hubermanns, juxtaposes a book of oppression and detestation into a story of hope and resilience, to impart optimism within the reader. The fact that the faint text of the Mein Kampf does not leak through the painted pages, as it did in The Standover Man, is symbolic of how the only way to obliterate the legacy of Hitler is through the union of Jews and Germans. This is utterly uplifting, as they elicit the realisation that even for Max, who is secluded from the world and tormented by the Nazi morals, is powerful enough to overcome his fear of Hitler’s
This accumulation of events which are skewed by common cultural perspectives is counteracted by the creative choice of narrator. The Book Thief, a narrative detailing Liesel, a young girl's journey of life during World War II employs this frequently. This form of biased writing within the novel byMarkus Zusak has constructed his expression of character and events to be distanced from our general connotations of the events occurring and preconceived ideas of the people of NAZI Germany. Few scenes occur outside of the context of the Hubberman's or Himmel street and no time goes by where the scene is not overlooked by the narration of Death.
Max showed her a side of the world that was technically forbidden for her German roots and family. Either way, her family housed a jewish person. Which was illegal at that time and punishable by death. Not a topic to take lightly. Anyways, Max wrote Liesel a book called “The Standover Man”. A quote from the book makes his story ironic. “It makes me understand that the best standover man I’ve ever known is not a man at all…” (Zusak, page 205, line 5-8) This is ironic because Liesel could be a man with her guts, but she is different. She doesn’t put up with any crap from anyone (but her parents of course), but she can also at the same time be very caring. She is as mean as an angry bull, but as nice as a caring mother with her newborn child. It’s kind of hard to think of any female being like that but that is how Liesel is
Words, so simple, yet are the most powerful ways of communication. The weight of words is one of most impactful themes in Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief, and is felt throughout the entire novel. The Book Thief is a story that takes place during World War II, and follows the Hubermann family and friendships as the Narrator: Death follows them through their journey of Germany in 1939. Hans Hubermann is one of the greatest supporters of words right next to the Book Thief herself, Liesel Meminger. Words are emphasized through stolen books, spoken conversations, and thoughts of the characters. Hans Hubermann backs Liesel’s desire to read through many long nights, protects Max Vandenburg while in hiding, and consistently stands up against the dehumanization
The characters such as Otto and Anna Quangel battle in a silent, yet powerful way to demonstrate their dignity, as well as individuals of a better Germany. The author Hans Fallada added symbolism and depth to demonstrate the maltreatment that not only Jews, but also German citizen’s received as well. With Hans Fallada being one of them, it seems evident that he added a vast proportion of his personal experiences into the novel, through the characters actions, voices, and experiences. In the society Fallada had once lived, it was impossible to say how one truly felt, so it seems possible to be able to express opinion through fictional writing. Fallada claimed, "A novel has its own laws and can not follow in all of reality" (Groschupt, 2011) which is substantial proof that this author expresses his internal thoughts and personal life in this novel, amongst many other
In The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak, beauty and brutality is seen in many of the characters. Rudy, Liesel, and Rosa display examples of beauty and brutality often without realizing what exactly they are doing, because it is a part of their human nature. Zusak not only uses his characters, but also the setting of the novel in Nazi Germany to allude to his theme of the beauty and brutality of human nature. The time in which the novel is set, during World War II, displays great examples of beauty and brutality, such as the mistreatment of the Jews. As a result of this time period, the characters have to go through troubling times, which reveals their beautiful and brutal nature in certain circumstances. Zusak uses his characters and their experiences to demonstrate the theme of the beauty and brutality of human nature in the novel.
When Liesel first arrived she was mute and terrified of what the future has in store, “She was a girl with a mountain to climb.”(86) She had a lot to overcome; her brothers death, moving into a new home, living with Max, and the war. She had to put her past behind her, fresh start, with a new beginning, and a clean slate. Liesel had to overcome the first day of school and being made fun of for not knowing how to read or write, “In the break, she was taunted. “Hey, Liesel. I’m having trouble with this word. Could you read it for me?” He laughed- a ten-year-old, smugness laughter. “You Dummkopf- you idiot.””(78) Moments after that she beat up Ludwig Schmeikl. She showed him that the words he said to Liesel won’t hurt her, but only motivate her to fight back. Liesel was always motivated to make things right. Whether it was fighting back for herself or fighting of fear with words for other. In the air raid, Liesel used tranquil voice to help show people there was hope. “The youngest kids were soothed by her voice, and everyone else saw visions of the whistler running from the crime scene. Liesel did not. The book thief saw only the mechanics of the words–their bodies stranded on the paper, beaten down for her to walk on.”(381) Liesel read aloud during the air raids and bombing to take people's minds off of what was happening outside. She used her love of words to bring courage to everyone in the
Unfortunately, there was an air raid that killed Hans, Rosa, Rudy, and everyone else in the block. When she was rescued from the rubble, she find’s Rudy’s dead body and finally gives him the kiss he’s always wanted. When she is taken away, she leaves her finished book, “The Book Thief”. Death rescues the book and waits to give it to Liesel when she is no longer alive. The Mayor and Ilsa Hermann then take Liesel in to live with them after she has no one left. When the concentration camps were liberated, Liesel was helping Rudy’s father. She was then surprised by a visit from Max. They hugged and cried together. When Liesel grows up, she moves to Australia, where Death finally takes her. When she dies, Death shows her the book she wrote many years ago in her 33 Himmel Street
Death states that, “I’m always finding humans at their best and worst. I see their ugly and their beauty, and I wonder how the same thing can be both” (Zusak 491). This book shows us human doing things that weren’t even imaginable before this point. Many people give into ideas that were lies. But, we also watch a few people go out of their way and sacrifice everything for a man they barely even know. They do everything they can to keep him safe and alive. They work harder, the get another job, and they even steal. In Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief, death examines the ugliness and the beauty of humans.