Sunday, October 14, 2012

Day 14 of 31 Days of Books off my Shelf


Day 14


Hey!

A book by Australian award-winning author, Markus Zusak is my choice today.

The Book Thief 
by Markus Zusak


Death narrates this jewel of a story set in 1940's Nazi Germany. 

" 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"

Foster child Liesel loves to read but books are being burned so she has taken to stealing them.  Not only does she steal them from the Nazi book-burning piles but she also steals them from the mayor's wife's library. Stealing books is a secret but so is the Jewish man hiding in the basement with whom she shares the books.

"How does it feel...when you take one of those books...It feels good doesn't it to steal something back"

The story mimics the dominos on the book's cover; something tips and a chain of events is unleashed.

I think this book would make an excellent companion to Night by Elie Wiesel.  Both give very different perspectives of a similar place and time.

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Happy Reading!


Mimi




"If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire."  
Revelation 20:15  NIV Bible



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4 comments:

  1. Mimi,

    I've had the sample of "The Book Thief" in my Kindle forever! It looks so good...I just need to read it! I also own a copy of "Night" but have yet to read it. Your saying that these two connect is intriguing me...I may have to start them right away!

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  2. Katie,
    If you do read them back to back, please let me know what you think! I'd love to chat about it : )

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  3. This book is unforgettable. I read it over a year ago and still think about it all the time. I feel like it revealed to me how much I judge people on appearances. I love that with Death as the narrator no one was described in a positive way physically. People were stripped down to what they believed and how they really acted in life's true test of character moments. I wondered if that was at all the author's intention, then read this quote from his other book, I Am Messenger:
    “Sometimes people are beautiful.
    Not in looks.
    Not in what they say.
    Just in what they are.”

    I love when a book gets in your head and actually changes how you think.

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    Replies
    1. Hey Shelley!
      Yes, great insight -- I agree. I read I Am the Messenger too. I loved that quote and thought the book was excellent. In some ways, I liked it better than The Book Thief but The Book Thief has stayed with me longer. And like you said, it gets in your head sometimes changing how you think as you chew on it.

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