The Tale of The Book Thief

“This is the tale of the book thief, as narrated by death. And when death tells a story, you really have to listen.”

Not the book. Just a few lines written behind the cover page. But they are enough to catch my attention.

In The Book Thief, the author Markus Zusak told us a story from Death’s point of view. Story of a young girl. Story of words. Story of book thievery. Story of the cruelty of the World War I and II.  

The story of The Book Thief started when Liesel Merminger, the girl who was later turned out to be the book thief, was on a journey by train with her mother and younger brother. During the journey, her brother died in front of her eyes, which left a permanent scar in her heart. Later, when her brother was buried, she picked up a book which was found beside the grave. It was A Grave-digger’s Handbook. That was when the journey of the book thief began.

The story took place in Himmel Street, Germany. Liesel was foster daughter of Hans Hubermann, who was a painter, an accordionist and a man with a big heart and Rosa Hubermann, a woman who was known to be harsh by everyone around her, but as the story continues, it was gradually revealed that she did have soft sides. We are also introduced to so many other characters. Every character of the book has their own significance, just like life itself. Among them, some of them has special places, as they had an important part in Liesel’s life, such as Rudy Steiner - Liesel’s best friend, Max Vandenberg - the Jew who took shelter in Hubermann’s house, Ilsa Hermann – mayor’s wife who introduced her library to Liesel. 

Liesel’s life took a turn when she was introduced to the library of mayor’s wife Ilsa Hermann. Later, when her mother was fired from the job of doing laundry of mayor, Liesel started stealing books from that library, with the assistance of Rudy. Liesel’s life took another turn when she met Max. Liesel started to form a bond with words – and it led her to write her own story one day. 

Apart from Liesel’s story, the story also reflected on the situation of Germany at that time. There are stories of war. Stories of those who witnessed death. 

The magic of the book doesn’t lie in the story; it lies in the way of its storytelling. The writing style made the descriptions so vivid and close to life; it makes the readers connect to the book, the characters and their everyday lives. The life of the ordinary girl Liesel Merminger and the ordinary people of Himmel Street became unordinary because of the way the author described them. Just like life itself, the story doesn’t focus on a single thing – it covers various topics at a time. The power of words, the brutality of war, everyday life amidst of the World War, trauma from losing a loved one – the story reflected on them all.