The Book Thief in Crazy Challenge Connection

Dec 28, 2016 Darlene rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobook, library, historical-fiction, young-adult, read-in-2016, book-to-screen, overdrive

This was a touching story of one German family who showed kindness to a Jew, at a time when they were being persecuted.

The story takes place in Germany during World War II. A nine-year-old girl named Liesel Meminger is travelling to Munich with her younger brother, Werner, and mother. Unfortunately, her brother dies on the train. When they get off the train to bury her brother, Liesel steals a book. Liesel’s mother is ill and takes her to Hans and Rosa Hubermann, who will be Liesel’s foster pare This was a touching story of one German family who showed kindness to a Jew, at a time when they were being persecuted.

The story takes place in Germany during World War II. A nine-year-old girl named Liesel Meminger is travelling to Munich with her younger brother, Werner, and mother. Unfortunately, her brother dies on the train. When they get off the train to bury her brother, Liesel steals a book. Liesel’s mother is ill and takes her to Hans and Rosa Hubermann, who will be Liesel’s foster parents. Liesel actually does not know how to read, so Hans teaches her and reads the book to her that she stole, which turns out to be a gravedigger’s handbook. Rosa is a very brusque woman who insults everyone by calling them saumensch (pig girl) or saukerl (pig man). However, we later see as the story goes on that she uses these names as terms of endearment. The Hubermanns take in a young Jewish man named Max Vandenburg, and they hide him in their basement. Liesel and Max form a unique bond, and they share that they are both haunted by their dreams. Liesel also makes friends with a local boy named Rudy Steiner, who accompanies Liesel on her book burglaries. When the mayor’s wife cancels her laundry service with Rosa Hubermann, Liesel breaks into her house and steals books from their massive library. When the town’s residents have to seek refuge in bomb shelters, Liesel reads these books to them to pass the time.

This book is filled with examples of kindnesses shown from one to another during a very dark time. On one occasion, Hans Hubermann gives bread to a Jewish prisoner on his way to the concentration camp and Hans gets whipped for it. We also learn that the mayor’s wife was aware that Liesel was stealing her books, and she leaves her a note and invites her to use the door the next time.

Interestingly, this book’s narrator is Death and we are given lots of foreshadowing of what is about to take place. I thought that this gave the book a unique perspective.

Narrator Allan Corduner is new-to-me, and he was amazing! He brought this story to life, and he portrayed each character so well.

This review was posted on my book blog:
http://darlenesbooknook.blogspot.ca/2... ...more

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Nov 11, 2019 Rianne rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites

I've been hearing about the Book Thief for ages. The unusual, metaphorical descriptions and compelling people captured my heart and my imagination from early on, and I ugly cried in the middle of the office when I finished this on my lunch break. There's something about the spirit of humanity at its highest and lowest that left me feeling destroyed by the time my journey with this book was done. ...more

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Oct 15, 2014 Lori rated it really liked it

I really do not know what to write. I have been thinking about it and when I finished I thought that was a good book and started another one. But I keep thinking about the book, it sneaks in at odd times. I think about Rudy and Hans mostly. This is a very haunting tale and one I would recommend.

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Jan 25, 2017 Audrey Dellinger rated it really liked it · review of another edition

4.5 Stars

I loved this book. Once I got used to the narrator's voice, I really fell in love with it. (view spoiler) almost killed me - I was completely ugly crying.

I knocked off .5 rating because it took me a little while to get into the book and used to the writing style (it didn't capture me immediately) and because it's classified as a YA novel. I really hate that. John Green's books? Yes, YA material. This book? Just because the main character is young doesn't me ...more

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Feb 27, 2013 Jirrine rated it really liked it

More reviews on: www.jirrinereads.wordpress.com

This book was really hard for me to get into. I started reading this more than a month ago and I just couldn’t get into the story. To be honest, I was a little dissappointed because this book is extremely hyped up, especially with the release of the film adaptation. It did however decide to give it a second change and I picked it up again a couple of days ago. And I must say, now that I’ve finished it, I am glad I did.

I really liked the interesting More reviews on: www.jirrinereads.wordpress.com

This book was really hard for me to get into. I started reading this more than a month ago and I just couldn’t get into the story. To be honest, I was a little dissappointed because this book is extremely hyped up, especially with the release of the film adaptation. It did however decide to give it a second change and I picked it up again a couple of days ago. And I must say, now that I’ve finished it, I am glad I did.

I really liked the interesting point of view: this book is narrated by death. An advantage of this pov is that you get to know the main character Liesel really well. I really admire Liesel. She has such a strong passion for reading and she shows that you can accomplish and overcome anything as long as you try. Liesel clearly matures in the course of the book, and this makes her a very three dimensional character.

The downside of death as a narrator is that many plot twists are already given away before the events really happen. The narrator is remember Liesel’s story and therefore jumps ahead sometimes. Consequently I was not overwhelmed by emotion, despite the sadness of some parts of the book. This is mainly because you often already know what is going to happen, as the narrator gave it away 100 or 200 pages earlier.

I loved the inclusion of drawings and letters in the book, especially because they made the book personal. I loved the allegory of the word shaker halfway through the book. It really captures how Hitler was able to exert so much power.

Despite the thickness of the book it didn’t feel long. The chapters were really short and that immensely added to the flow of this book. Also the quotations in Bold really set the scenes, which made the read very clear.

I liked this book and I would certainly recommend you read it, but I was not blown away by it. I think this mainly because I such high expectations of this book. However, I think that there is a beautiful message in this book: that there is compassion everywhere, especially in the darkest days of our past. I therefore give The Book Thief 4 stars. ...more

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Dec 28, 2012 Rebecca rated it it was amazing

I have to admit, if I had a choice of which book I would want Columbia to read in the One Read 2013 program, this would be it. It's a very moving story of an orphaned girl who comes to live with an older couple in Molching, just outside of Munich, just before the outbreak of the Second World War. Although the book can be sad at times, it's punctuated by funny stories and a very unusual narrator. I highly recommend! ...more

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Feb 06, 2014 Lindsay♫SingerOfStories♫ rated it liked it

Shelves: 2014-reads

Spoiler alert: the book is sad. Yeah, its set during World War II so I should have seen it coming, and I expected a good cry, but this was just a ridiculous sob. I hated how it ended! Like, really!?!?!!? Ugh. As for the rest of the book....the language was really beautiful and I found it unique that it was narrated by "death" (a fairly humorous and overall likable character) but it was pretty slow to me and a little boring. I put it down a couple times to read different books so it took me quite ...more

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