As someone who devour books more frequently than anything else for the satisfaction of my creative and intellectual hunger ,i rarely find myself relishing on the aftertaste of a book like i did for this masterpiece by Mark Zusak. It is as tempting to a bibliophile as a fine meal and fine wine is to a gourmand. I picked up this book randomly mainly attracted to its title.Mostly i prefer to outline the character and the plot separately when discussing about a book ,but in this case both are inseparable.There is an inter-winding relationship between the people and the plot.Set in the period of 1939-1943 ,the town of Molching in Germany has a story to tell.The narrator couldn't have been better then DEATH,to talk about Nazi Germany.Do not expect it to something like Terry Prachett's narration by death in SoulMusic ,rather it is a very different flavor altogether.
The protagonist of this story a girl named Liesel, effectively an orphan taken in by Hans and Rosa Huberman. The first of many interaction the narrator has with her is when he visits her brother to pick him up for afterlife,but hangs in a little longer to witness Liesel swindle her first book- " The Grave Digger's handbook". Somewhat inappropriate for a first read ,this book is the instrument with which the author builds the relationship between the Liesel and her foster father Hans Huberman.It is also a head fake that fulfills the purpose of sketching the character of Hans Huberman.A tall,quiet man with silver eyes and noble heart.He was a painter,a musician who plays the accordion, a somewhat non-conformist but most importantly a teacher who taught Liesel to read and write.Rosa Huberman is a lovely lady with a big heart but a swearing mouth,who does laundry for the rich people in town.Another important figure in the plot is that of Rudy Steiner-the boy with lemon hairs.A rebel by nature,ardent fan of Jesse Owens much to the horror of his parents.
The narrator takes the readers through the story of protagonist's life using the blend of his interactions with the girl ,her surroundings and the account taken from the black book he stole from her.The Death is essentially a lonely being busy during the period ,but has time to contemplate the behavior and nature of humans as it changes and sometimes be puzzled by it.As the plot unwinds itself slowly ,making one helpless but fall in love with it. The tone and mood of the plot changes with the entry of a Jew fist fighter in the lives of Huberman family.Named Max Vandenburg ,this character introduces with itself the ugliness of the human nature prominent in Nazi Germany during those times.There is nothing a reader can do but to empathize with the life of this boy broken by the loss of family and just trying to survive.
This also brings out the beauty and bravery of the Huberman family at the same time by taking care of this boy in times described by the author in following lines-" Imagine being asked to smile after being slapped on face now multiply this feeling twenty four times during the day,that is what it feels like to hide a Jew in Nazi Germany". Every emotion written is poetic, even the times of Holocaust seems tragic yet lyrical.The most riveting part of the book is the part where a unusual friendship forms between Leisel and Max.A fist fighter struggling to survive and a girl trying to figure out the world around her.Both connected and haunted by their own kind of nightmares.The standover man written on painted pages of Mein Kampf ,the crosswords collected from garbage,weather reports of outside world in words of a little girl,the thirteen presents and a parting gift in form of The Word Shaker - all were the important element of this friendship.
Talking of friendship there was one more of importance between Liesel and Rudy.This was defined differently in colors of their adventures and misadventures,a constant try to steal a kiss,stealing books from mayor's library and the chant of Saukerl and Saumensch. Throughout the book the emotions changed with the people in the plot.One cannot escape feeling the fanatical dedication of the Nazi towards the Fuhrer in the episodes of Hans Huberman trying to make his ends meet after help a Jew with a bread,lashing of Liesel by Soldiers for reaching out to Max in the procession of Jews taken to a concentration camp. Stealing the moments are the small triumphs of Liesel and Rudy,whether it was stealing apples from the farm ,winning the Hitler youth games or out smarting the German Army Inspector to warn Max,one can do nothing but smile.Ilsa Hermann,a grieving mother also was an essential part of Liesel's story. The whistler obtained By Liesel from her library transformed itself into a tool of distraction for People of Himmel(Heaven) Street during the time of air raids.Her ultimate gift was also responsible and essential for the plot. The author subtly tells the reader that many German lives were also lost during such dark times and the Germans also lived in fear of their lives from a different kind of danger.The end nevertheless broke my heart to many pieces but the end was hinted along the way by the narrator in his words.The most enticing character of this book was DEATH ,as he go forward with the story he forms a mesmerizing narration often satirical or poetic,tragic and funny. As in the below lines:
"It kills me sometimes, how people die."
“I wanted to tell the book thief many things, about beauty and brutality. But what could I tell her about those things that she didn't already know? I wanted to explain that I am constantly overestimating and underestimating the human race-that rarely do I ever simply estimate it. I wanted to ask her how the same thing could be so ugly and so glorious, and its words and stories so damning and brilliant.”
“Even death has a heart.”
“A small but noteworthy note. I've seen so many young men over the years who think they're running at other young men. They are not. They are running at me.”(On war)
“To me, war is like the new boss who expects the impossible. He stands over your shoulder repeating one thing, incessantly: “Get it done, get it done.” So you work harder. You get the job done. The boss, however, does not thank you. He asks for more.”
i would like to end by stealing Liesel's words as it will be a befitting honor for the second book thief : "I have hated the word and I have loved them, and I hope I have made them right."
PS: i have tried not to reveal the plot and its mystery.I hope you love the book as i did.
