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Spoiler for Book Thief
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Lori, Super Mod
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Aug 01, 2008 05:40PM
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I thoroughly enjoyed this book....Finished it about 6 minutes ago.
I started it at about 2:00 this morning and I love it! I haven't had much opportunity to read, but managed to get about 100 pages in. The writing is incredible and what an interesting narrator. :)
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I found it incredibly deep that Death was the narrator.....one of the things I don't think YA's truly understand....
I am surprised this is labeled YA. I see it as more "general fiction." I like the twist of Death being the narrator. So far so good...I think I will enjoy this book.On pages 26-27, I found my favorite "observation" thus far:
"A pair of train guards.
A pair of grave diggers.
When it came down to it, one of them called the shots.
The other did what he was told.
The question is, what if the other is a lot more than one?"
This is a great setup to the period the book is set in; during Hitler's control of Nazi Germany.
Okay, but I haven't read the book so can't really discuss it with you. How about we talk about pie instead? I can talk about pie for days.
lol... i appreciate your efforts Logan. Kristie, I am anxiously waiting for people to discuss the book with too. :( How far are you into it?
I'm happy to discuss the book... I read it in March. I'm just not great at conversation starters, lol
First off... did you like it? I am at the section where Death just "ruined" the ending by saying what happens to Rudy... I'm nervous. I did enjoy that part though. "I have given you two events in advance, because I don't have much interest in building mystery. Mystery bores me. It chores me. I know what happens and so do you. It's the machination that wheel us there that aggravate, perplex, interest, and astound me."
Intersting comment, since it seems to go against the common view of 'spoilers.'
Yeah, I loved this book, and it stayed with me for a while after reading it.I don't think the statement from Death ruins the ending. The book isn't really meant to be a mystery... I think that showing the events leading up to the 'ending' that Death has just informed us of is the real flesh of the book...
Yeah, I can see that. Good point Kirsty. I am hoping to read more during my lunch break. I read alot last night and have reached that good point in a book, where you are fully into it.
I agree with Kirsty in that Death doesn't ruin the ending. Although I was really upset that the author had given away as to what was going to happen later, because I hate spoilers, I was surprised how I forgot about those things as I became completely engrossed in the story.
I thought the idea of using Death as a narrator was interesting. I really enjoyed this book even though there were many sad parts in it. I bawled like a baby at the end. That's usually how I can tell if it's a good book, if I cry! I think one of the hardest parts for me was when the Book Thief encountered Max in the parade. I also loved her papa too!
I finished the book Saturday. I agree that the part where the book theif saw max was heart wrenching, as well. However, I liked that Zusak gave the picture that not all Germans were Hitler admirers. As I read, I felt all the anxiety that Leisel and her foster family felt. Although the beginning took me awhile to get into the writing style, I liked the spoilers because he never explained them fully til he was ready to. It left this bit of wonder of how it happened or the whys. I kept reading, to find out the hows and whys
I actually liked the fact that Death told us who was going to die later in the book. I found that really moving. Knowing that you were watching someones last days/months on earth without them knowing packed a powerful punch, I thought. Petunia, I bawled like a baby at the end too. Although you know exactly what's coming, I was so unprepared for it to hit me as hard as it did.
Oh my gosh, I am so glad others have finished the book! I finished it in the wee hours of Tuesday morning and I can't get it out of my head. What a beautiful, beautiful book. The writing was so poetic and I particularly liked how Death spoke about the colors.Was anyone else as moved by Max's story to Leisel? And Petunia, I also LOVED Papa and even Mama. Remember how Mama came to the school to yell at Leisel about her hair brush?
Fantastic book. Kristie Faye, thanks for making us talk!
***If anyone hasn't read to the very end yet please don't read this post yet***Val, I loved Max and Leisel. Now please someone tell me whether you think that it is Max whom she marries. When we read this for my book club 8 months ago the group was split on this but I really, really want and need to believe that they did marry. The last we see them together is when he comes into the shop and they fall on the floor. I must be such an old romantic - please tell me you agree?????
OMG... my eyes keep straying back, trying to sneak a peek, but I dont want to!...thanks for the heads up!
Val, I really enjoyed Max's story. I am only halfway through the book, so I can't comment on the ending, but I enjoy reading about WW2 from a perspective inside Germany and how those that didnt join the Nazi's were seemingly blacklisted.
Tisha, that was one of many things I loved about this book. Most stories centered in Germany during WWII focus on the plight of the Jewish people. And their stories need to be told again and again. But, it was nice to have a different perspective during the same period.
Heather, I agree. Have you read All Quiet on the Western Front? It's an amazing book (fiction) written from the perspective of a German soldier. It really opened my eyes and made me remember that those young boys didn't want to be there any more than ours did. It really is a great book if you haven't read it yet.
Boof, I read it a long time ago and I really liked it. Hmmm, I think I may need to re-read it. I do remember having the same eye-opening experience as you.
I may need to check out that book. I generally avoid WW2 books and movies because that part of history is SO incredibly maddening to me. That SO many people followed that monster's lead is unimaginable. Surely something for the sociologists, but I get so upset.I do realize it is important to remember though. (and be aware of)
***WARNING*** Don't read if you haven't finished the book!BOOF - I thought the same thing about Max and Leisel and I also LOVED how their reunion in the shop was described. I also want to think that they married. I found it interesting how Death catches us up with Leisel's life - she's married, has kids and grandkids, and where she lives - but nothing about WHO she married. Yes, I think it is Max.
I was also interested in getting a different perspective of Germans during WWII. I admit that because I've read so many novels or non-fiction accounts set during this time from the Jewish perspective that I kept forgetting that Leisel wasn't Jewish.
Val, YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYY!!!!!! I'm so happy now!
****BIG SPOILER****I cried when I finished this book, too. Papa was my hero throughout, and yes, I do believe that Max married Liesel :)
I am so happy that people are loving this book. I think that it provides a wonderful story and that it is beautifully written in a very unique way. It's a little gem that I am pleased to see more people are reading. It's a long book, too, but the story was so gripping that it all just flew by.
I wondered who Leisel married, but it never occurred to me that it would have been Max. It's books like this that leave so many questions unanswered that make me a tiny bit aggravated! Thinking about it now, I don't know if Max and Leisel get married but I am sure that they play a part in each other's lives. I kept wondering what Leisel's kids' names were.
Kristie Faye, they do, they do, they do! They DO get married! I have to believe that there was a lovley happy ending to this. I know what you mean about the kids names, I always wonder about things like that too.
I also think they got married... that seems to be what Zusak was leading us to believe. I think it was a lovely way to end the book!
I'm curious to see how they treat this issue in the movie.
I loved Max's stories to Leisel. I also love that we see the "handwritten" versions.
There's going to be a movie???? YAY!!!!!!!!
I think two of their sons have to be named Rudy and Hans. I still can't get this book out of my head, and it's making it difficult to concentrate on what I'm reading now.
I like the sound of a movie, and yes Sera I will be interested to see how they do it in that too.OK, so did anyone else cry at the end? And if so who's death affected you the most?
I bawled like a baby for all of them but Papa broke my heart (I'm welling up just thinking about it). And I was totally unprepared for this but Mama did too - when all said and done she loved Liesel and her death was the one that made me burst out crying and then couldn't stop. Rudy too.........oh God, I'm setting myself off now!
Val, I know what you mean - I read it 8 months ago and walked round in a daze for days afterwards, telling everyone I knew about it. It's a very powerful book, isn't it?Hans and Rudy for the kids - perfect!
I'm with you, Boof, in that Papa's death was the worst! We all knew Rudy would die as Death told us earlier in the book he would, but to have Papa die! Especially when Death told us early on how Papa avoided him during WWI and then would again during WWII. He didn't warn us that he would get Papa not long after! That just broke my heart.Thank goodness I'm on enough "happy pills" to keep me from crying.
Boof, Papa made me cry the hardest. What a wonderful, sweet man, and I agree that even though we knew that he was going to die, when it came, it happened so quickly, that I said "oh no"! Every night when I put the book down before bed, all I could say was "wow" (in between tears sometimes, too).
I finished the book earlier today and was totally not expecting the whole street to be bombed. The scene of Leisel with Rudy's body was heartwrenching but we did know early on that he was going to die, so Papa's death was the hardest for me. I just kept imagining this little girl emerging from her basement and having her world gone.And I also want to believe that Leisel married Max, a bit of happiness in a book that ended in such a dark way.
I just finished this book so I could finally venture back into this thread. I honestly hadn't considered the thought of Max and Leisel, but after you all mention it... I do think that's what happened. Their relationship was so special and I really hope thats what happened. I was very happy to discover that Max survived, but it is incredibly tragic that her world disappeared. What a great wrap around that books ultimately saved her life.
The most difficult death for me was Rudy. He had such spirit and loved her so much. Even though I knew it was coming... it was still horrible for me to read.
I enjoyed this book, didn't cry because I'm not much of a cryer, but I was moved.
Boof, I cried like a baby at the end! I felt so bad for Liesel. I think it was Papa's death that affected me most... I lost my Dad (not my sperm donor... lol... the guy who brought me up) when I was 18 (4 years ago) and I don't think I'll ever get over it... So I could really put myself into Liesel's place when she found out.I also agree, I was affected by Mama's death too, but really wasn't expecting to be.
I was only really affected by Papa's death. Even though I know that deep down Mama loved Liesel, she was so evil to her that to me Papa was the only one who loved her. So when she lost him......I felt like her life would be worse.
I felt so bad for Liesel when she was just sitting in the police station (right?) afterwards and they were trying to figure out what to do with her. It was then that it really hit me how alone she was and that she had nowhere to go.
oh yeah... we barely touched on the fact that she lives with the mayor and his wife in the end. I actually think they could make a sequel to this book... explaining that period better and the beginnings of her and Max. Maybe not though, it might just ultimately turn into a romance novel then.
I think a sequel would be a disappointment. I don't think it could be told from Death's perspective seeing as the WWII time frame of Liesel's life is what really interested him. That and the fact that we aren't sure that she really does end up with Max, I like leaving it as a mystery.
touche, Jessica. funny that I speak of her and Max as though it's become fact. silly silly me.
Tisha, I like to think that Max and Leisel together IS a fact. We can both be silly (and Boof will join us, too. Right?)I do like how we aren't told all of the details of Liesel's life after she survives the bombing. That way, we can imagine it as we like.
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