The Book Thief

I thought my book club had sworn off reading any more holocaust books, but someone snuck in this one, and I’m glad they did. Markus Zusak has created a memorable and important book with many richly conceived characters (including Death, the narrator). The protagonist, Liesel, is sent to live a with a foster family in Molching, Germany (near Munich) under somewhat unclear circumstances. On the way to Molching, her little brother dies and when he is buried, Liesel steals her first book, The Grave Digger’s Handbook. Throughout the rest of the novel, Liesel learns to read the book (as well as other books she steals) thanks to the tireless and loving guidance of her foster father. And she writes about the interesting people in her life, including her foul-mouthed foster mother, her friend Rudy who imagines himself to be Jesse Owens, the mayor's wife who allows her to steal books, and the Jewish fist fighter that she and her family hide as the Nazis are closing in. The book is a testament to the power of words. Although this book is classified as a YA (young adult) book, it fully deserves to be read by people of all ages.