Please feel free to answer as many or few of the below questions as you like. You are also welcome to add additional questions and comments about the book or movie. And of course you can also respond to other poster’s responses. I hope you enjoyed reading the book.
*****
Summary: It’s just a small story really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery.
Set during World War II in Germany, Markus Zusak’s groundbreaking new novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist—books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau. (From the publisher.)
*****
Questions:
Was Death a good Narrator in your opinion? If you we writing a fanfic from another character's POV who would you pick and why?
When would you feel comfortable with your child reading this story?
Are the characters in The Book Thief believable? Why, or why not?
How might the story look if it was told from Max's point of view? From Rosa's?
Do you like Markus Zusak's writing style in this novel? Does it make you want to read his other books? Why or why not?
Could Liesel have trusted Rudy with the fact that Max was hiding in her basement? Why or why not? Do you think it hurt his feelings when he learned the truth? Why or why not?
If you both read the book and watched the movie, which did you prefer? Why?
What questions, if any, does the novel leave unanswered?
Please add any additional comments you would like.
Updated with additional questions by @innanni
The Holocaust has become a common subject in literature. Sometimes fictional works set during the Holocaust have been criticised for being unaccurate or painting a misleading picture. (I'm talking about you The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.) Was there anything about this book that seemed inaccurate to you?
Re: The Book Thief
I originally read this book because there was a ton of hype about it. I was kind of disappointed. It was an okay read, but nothing amazing IMO. I thought that the idea of having Death as a narrator was interesting, but the writing style was a little off for me, and I'm not sure that I could really even explain why. I did like that it was a very different viewpoint of the holocaust, however. It's something that I think I would have the kids read along with things like Diary of Anne Frank. I really wanted to watch the movie, just to see how they translated the writing style to film, but I missed it in Redbox. I may grab it off Amazon tonight and report back.
Was Death a good Narrator in your opinion? If you we writing a fanfic from another character's POV who would you pick and why?
Death as a narrator made it difficult to follow, I thought. Towards the end, it was easier-I guess I just got used to it as I went-but it was tough in the beginning.
I think it would be neat to hear Hans Hubermann's POV. Max might be interesting as well, but it would probably be a little too Anne Frank-ish. I think Hans had lots of his own opinions that he wasn't free to speak or act on, and it would be interesting to hear his thoughts!
When would you feel comfortable with your child reading this story? I think it is comparable to the age kids read Anne Frank (except for the death narration-that might be difficult to get past). Maybe middle school? I think it offers a great viewpoint on WWII.
Are the characters in The Book Thief believable? Why, or why not? I think they are. I'm not sure why... I guess for the most part, they all reacted 'properly' to events-Liesel's recurring nightmares about her brother, Rosa taking the appearance of Max in stride (for the time-normal).
How might the story look if it was told from Max's point of view? From Rosa's? Like I said earlier, I think Max's POV would end up a bit too Anne Frank-ish. I don't know if Rosa's POV would be anything super spectacular, either. I don't really feel like she was super involved... Like she was more of an aloof character.
Do you like Markus Zusak's writing style in this novel? Does it make you want to read his other books? Why or why not? I didn't care for the writing style. I probably wouldn't read another of his books, although once I got used to it, it wasn't quite as bad. I did like that he took time to explain/define some things (like the German words), but it still felt like the story was choppy because of it. Keeping a few German words was appropriate to the story, though.
Could Liesel have trusted Rudy with the fact that Max was hiding in her basement? Why or why not? Do you think it hurt his feelings when he learned the truth? Why or why not?
I think she probably could have trusted Rudy. But, I can see why she didn't. Rudy loved her-and I think he had some of the same doubts in leadership as Liesel and her family. But, he also came across as a loud mouth boy! I bet it did hurt Rudy's feelings when he learned the truth, but he wouldn't have shown it. He wanted to be (and was) Liesel's best friend-and best friends don't keep secrets from each other!
If you both read the book and watched the movie, which did you prefer? Why? I liked the movie-it painted a different picture in my mind than the book, though. And the book had more details. As we watched the movie, I kept saying to MH 'they didn't do (such and such)...' 'In the book, it was different...' Even though the writing style wasn't really my thing, I think I preferred the book over the movie. (But the movie gave me proper pronunciations of some of those German words, which was nice!)
What questions, if any, does the novel leave unanswered? I want to know what happened in the rest of Liesel's life, as well as what happened to Hans and Rosa's bio children. And did it ever say what happened to Max?
dx PCOS 2007
BFP #1 (natural) 12/23/2010. Stillbirth due to IC 4/2/2011
TTC #2 starting 03/2012
RE starting 07/2012
05/2013 BFP on a Letrozole (Femara)/trigger!
Cerclage, Procardia, Makena, GD (with insulin), MBR, and we made it!
Our Angel was born sleeping at 20 weeks due to IC.
But David is having a deep discussion with the giraffe. I think he may have read the book. They may have both read it.
Was Death a good Narrator in your opinion? If you were writing a fanfic from another character's POV who would you pick and why?
True story -- I watched the movie and asked DH at the end if God was the narrator. I promise I'm not a moron. The book made it much clearer than the movie, IMO. (Or I wasn't paying attention. Or LO was screaming during that part.) I like that Death was omniscient, and, I think given the setting, it was an appropriate choice. I've never read a book narrated by Death, I don't think.
I think it would be most interesting to hear from different characters, and if I was writing, I would try to do that. I think if you chose just one character, you'd miss the whole picture of the story -- so it wouldn't just be a different side of a story, but a different story altogether. I'd love to hear from the mayor's wife about how the war was different for her as a wealthier person and also what she thought of Liesel. I'd love to hear from Rosa because there's clearly a softer side there. I'd also like to hear from Liesel.
When would you feel comfortable with your child reading this story?
I would file this under books I'd read with my child. (I have this dream of my kid and I reading the same book and having our own little book club meetings.) I certainly wouldn't say no if my child brought it home and wanted to read it.
Oh. It says when. I'm getting tipsy on my Diet Coke. I'd say teen years, for sure. I think anything younger and they're not going to understand so much of it. This book was actually recommended to me five years ago by a HS senior I taught. (I started it, didn't care for it, and put it back.) So -- high school. I think that's the age most appropriate. If my 12 year old is a good reader and brings it home, I wouldn't say no, but I wouldn't expect them to understand it all.
Do you like Markus Zusak's writing style in this novel? Does it make you want to read his other books? Why or why not?
I wasn't a fan of the writing style or the formatting. I found it distracting. There's something else, I just can't quite put my finger on it. I won't be running out to read his other books. Like @mevaroo, I didn't care for the bolded parts.
If you both read the book and watched the movie, which did you prefer? Why?
I actually think I preferred the movie. But I saw the movie first, so maybe that's swaying my decision? I'm someone who almost always prefers the book. I think my issues with the writing style and formatting may have swayed my decision.
I think they movie could have been made richer with the inclusion of some of the minor characters and their stories.
Neither the book nor the movie were my favorites.
The Holocaust has become a common subject in literature. Sometimes fictional works set during the Holocaust have been criticised for being unaccurate or painting a misleading picture. (I'm talking about you The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.) Was there anything about this book that seemed inaccurate to you?
I found it hard to believe that the Nazis didn't find Max in the basement. You'd think they'd look behind drop cloths and the like.
dx PCOS 2007
BFP #1 (natural) 12/23/2010. Stillbirth due to IC 4/2/2011
TTC #2 starting 03/2012
RE starting 07/2012
05/2013 BFP on a Letrozole (Femara)/trigger!
Cerclage, Procardia, Makena, GD (with insulin), MBR, and we made it!
Our Angel was born sleeping at 20 weeks due to IC.
That's a good point, maybe that was the purpose. I couldn't help but feel like it sort of changed things though. Between the book and the movie.
dx PCOS 2007
BFP #1 (natural) 12/23/2010. Stillbirth due to IC 4/2/2011
TTC #2 starting 03/2012
RE starting 07/2012
05/2013 BFP on a Letrozole (Femara)/trigger!
Cerclage, Procardia, Makena, GD (with insulin), MBR, and we made it!
Our Angel was born sleeping at 20 weeks due to IC.
I just read the new Lisa Scottoline book and it was pretty good.
Also, I really liked the Book Thief, but I only watched the movie.