The Book Thief

First thing I want to tell you about this book, is that I cried! :'( !  It is not anything I am proud of, but I swear I did! Now, I am not a person who cries easily reading a book ("P.S. I love You" is not counted!), but this book got me feeling all low and boo- hoo senti!

The narrative is the most interesting part of the book. The story is told by none other than Death!


The book reminded me of "To kill a Mocking bird" for some reason. The protagonist is a young girl. You would completely relate to her innocence and her playful, light hearted, approach to life.You would be pleasantly surprised that your own child-like quality is not burried as deep inside as you had thought!

Set it Germany in the 1940s, a little girl Liesel Meminger lives with her adopted family, is an avid reader. She spends her simple life reading... being read to by her father (one of the most touching moments).. running errands for her mother.. playing, swimming and cycling with Rudy, her childhood best- buddy..

Not everything is sweet and happy though. In the back ground, are very disturbing and much more grave social realities like poverty, social discrimination, hiding of a Jew in the family's basement, Nazi concentration camps, bomb dropping over random towns etc. But all these is seen through the protagonist's point of view remember? The seriousness and the gory-ness is somewhat cushioned and you start thinking like the little girl, who's life is concerned only with her immediate surroundings.

I will not give away, what happens in the end (and what made me cry!). It is very touching and and will make you value relationships and the importance of expressing yourself at the right time- before it might get too late... sigh..


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