'It's just a small story, really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, a Jewish fist fighter, and quite a lot of thievery ...' This work is narrated in the all-knowing matter-of-fact voice of Death, witnessing the story of the citizens of Himmel Street: When nine-year-old Liesel arrives outside the boxlike house of her new foster parents, she refuses to get out of the car. Liesel has been separated from her parents - 'Kommunists' - for ever, and at the burial of her little brother, she steals a gravedigger's instruction manual which she can't read. It is the beginning of her illustrious career. In the care of the Hubermans, Liesel befriends blond-haired Rudy Steiner, her neighbour obsessed with Jesse Owens. She also befriends the mayor's wife, who hides from despair in her library. Together Liesel and Rudy steal books - from Nazi book burning piles, from the mayor's library, from the richer people of Molching. In time, the family hide a Jewish boxer, Max, who reads with Liesel in the basement.. By 1943, the Allied bombs are falling, and the sirens begin to wail. Liesel shares out her books in the air-raid shelters. But one day in the life of Himmel street, the wail of the sirens comes too late...A life-changing tale of the cruel twists of fate and the coincidences on which all our lives hinge, this is also a joyous look at the power of book to nourish the soul. Its uplifting ending will make all readers weep.
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Editorial Reviews
From School Library Journal
Starred Review. Grade 9 Up–Zusak has created a work that deserves the attention of sophisticated teen and adult readers. Death himself narrates the World War II-era story of Liesel Meminger from the time she is taken, at age nine, to live in Molching, Germany, with a foster family in a working-class neighborhood of tough kids, acid-tongued mothers, and loving fathers who earn their living by the work of their hands. The child arrives having just stolen her first book–although she has not yet learned how to read–and her foster father uses it, The Gravediggers Handbook, to lull her to sleep when shes roused by regular nightmares about her younger brothers death. Across the ensuing years of the late 1930s and into the 1940s, Liesel collects more stolen books as well as a peculiar set of friends: the boy Rudy, the Jewish refugee Max, the mayors reclusive wife (who has a whole library from which she allows Liesel to steal), and especially her foster parents. Zusak not only creates a mesmerizing and original story but also writes with poetic syntax, causing readers to deliberate over phrases and lines, even as the action impels them forward. Death is not a sentimental storyteller, but he does attend to an array of satisfying details, giving Liesels story all the nuances of chance, folly, and fulfilled expectation that it deserves. An extraordinary narrative.–Francisca Goldsmith, Berkeley Public Library, CA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Bookmarks Magazine
Zusak, author of I Am the Messenger,took a risk with his second book by making Death an omniscient narrator—and it largely paid off. Originally published in Australia and marketed for ages 12 and up, The Book Thief will appeal both to sophisticated teens and adults with its engaging characters and heartbreaking story. The Philadelphia Inquirer compared the book's power to that of a graphic novel, with its "bold blocks of action." If Zusak's postmodern insertions (Death's commentary, for example) didn't please everyone, the only serious criticism came from Janet Maslin, who faulted the book's "Vonnegut whimsy" and Lemony Snicket-like manipulation. Yet even she admitted that The Book Thief "will be widely read and admired because it tells a story in which books become treasures." And, as we all know, "there's no arguing with a sentiment like that."<BR>Copyright © 2004 Phillips & Nelson Media, Inc.
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More About the Author
Australian author Markus Zusak grew up hearing stories about Germany during WWII, about the bombing of Munich and about Jews being marched through his mother's small, German town. He always knew it was a story he wanted to tell.
"We have these images of the straight-marching lines of boys and the 'Heil Hitlers' and this idea that everyone in Germany was in it together. But there still were rebellious children and people who didn't follow the rules and people who hid Jews and other people in their houses. So there's another side to Germany," said Zusak in an interview with The Sydney Morning Herald.
At the age of 30, Zusak has already asserted himself as one of today's most innovative and poetic novelists. With the publication of The Book Thief, he is now being dubbed a "literary phenomenon" by Australian and U.S. critics. Zusak is the award-winning author of four previous books for young adults: The Underdog, Fighting Ruben Wolfe, Getting the Girl, and I Am the Messenger, recipient of a 2006 Printz Honor for excellence in young adult literature. He lives in Sydney.
Q&A with the author:
*How did you become a writer?
When I was growing up, I wanted to be a house painter like my father, but I was always screwing up when I went to work with him. I had a talent for knocking over paint and painting myself into corners. I also realized fairly quickly that painting bored me. When I was a teenager, I read some books that brought me totally into their worlds. One was The Old Man and the Sea and another was What's Eating Gilbert Grape. When I read those books, I thought, "That's what I want to do." It took seven years to get published and there were countless daily failures, but I'm glad those failures and rejections happened. They made me realise that what I was writing just wasn't good enough, so I made myself improve.
*Do you follow a set routine when you write?
I basically have two routines. The first one is the non-lazy routine, where I get up and work from about 7am and aim to finish by 11:30. That usually sees me through till noon or twelve-thirty (with some time-wasting in between). Then I'll take a long break and do a few more hours in the afternoon. The lazy routine usually starts at 10am and I'll write longer into the afternoon.
The only time these routines really change is at the start or end of a book, when I'm more likely to work at night. I can't face starting a book early in the morning purely because self-belief levels are at their lowest for me when I wake up. When I'm finishing a book, I will stay up longer and work through the night, mainly out of desperation to finally get it done.
*How did you come to write I Am The Messenger?
I was sitting in a park one night eating fish and chips and saw a bank with a fifteen minute parking zone out the front, and I thought, "Fifteen minutes, that's not very long, every time I go the bank it takes a lot longer than that." I then thought, "What if you were in that bank when it was being robbed and your car was out in the fifteen minute parking zone? How would you get out to move your car to avoid getting a fine?" That gave me the bungled bank robbery scene that led to everything else in the book.
*What do you do to get away from writing?
Living in Sydney, I've taken the chance to start surfing again. One of my best memories of growing up is catching my first proper wave and surfing across it and my brother cheering at me from the shore. Many years later, I've started up again and I'm really loving it, as long as the waves are small enough! I also watch a lot of movies, especially when I'm struggling with a story I'm working on. I like watching the same ones over and over again, so I half watch and half think about the story.
*Lastly, where do you get your ideas from?
I used to lie about this, but now I actually know:
I started writing when I was sixteen. I'm thirty now. I get my ideas from fourteen years of thinking about it.
A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR
13 Facts (+ a few more) about Markus Zusak
1.He has severe troubles writing biographies about himself because he doesn't find himself particularly inspiring.
2.He lives in Sydney near the Royal National Park, where he has lunch with the local deer, the kookaburras (a very tough brand of laughing birds) and other creatures.
3.He is a dog person, but he has two cats, Bijoux and Brutus. He named the second one.
4.His middle name is Frank. (When he hated the name Markus, his brother and one of his sisters suggested he use his middle name: Clearly, Frank was not really a step in the right direction.)
5.His three favorite books are:
1. What's Eating Gilbert Grape by Peter Hedges
2. The Half Brother by Lars Saabye Christensen
3. My Brother Jack by George Johnston
6.The last book he read was Werewolves in their Youth by Michael Chabon, and the book he is currently reading is Ulysses by James Joyce.
7.In 2005, he attempted to read 52 books. He is writing a book about this ridiculous reading challenge and calling it 53 Killers. People ask him, "Why fifty-three and not fifty-two?"
8.His three favorite movies are:
1. Amelie by John Pierre Juenet
2. The Big Lebowski by the Cohen Brothers
3. Run Lola Run by Tom Tykwer
(And although it's not a favorite, he also has a soft spot for The Goonies.)
9.The last movies he's seen are A Very Long Engagement and The Motorcycle Diaries.
10.If he could meet anyone who ever lived, he would choose Michelangelo.
11.He got the idea for I am the Messenger when he was sitting in a park one night eating fish and chips and saw a bank with a fifteen minute parking zone out front. He thought, "Fifteen minutes, that's not very long. every time I go the bank it takes a lot longer than that." He then thought, "What if you were in that bank when it was being robbed and your car was out in the fifteen minute parking zone? How the hell would you get out to move your car to avoid a fine?" (That's exactly what happens at the start of the book.)
12.He is riddled with self-doubt about I am the Messenger but is glad he wrote it because he loves The Doorman.
13.His favorite number is thirteen.
"We have these images of the straight-marching lines of boys and the 'Heil Hitlers' and this idea that everyone in Germany was in it together. But there still were rebellious children and people who didn't follow the rules and people who hid Jews and other people in their houses. So there's another side to Germany," said Zusak in an interview with The Sydney Morning Herald.
At the age of 30, Zusak has already asserted himself as one of today's most innovative and poetic novelists. With the publication of The Book Thief, he is now being dubbed a "literary phenomenon" by Australian and U.S. critics. Zusak is the award-winning author of four previous books for young adults: The Underdog, Fighting Ruben Wolfe, Getting the Girl, and I Am the Messenger, recipient of a 2006 Printz Honor for excellence in young adult literature. He lives in Sydney.
Q&A with the author:
*How did you become a writer?
When I was growing up, I wanted to be a house painter like my father, but I was always screwing up when I went to work with him. I had a talent for knocking over paint and painting myself into corners. I also realized fairly quickly that painting bored me. When I was a teenager, I read some books that brought me totally into their worlds. One was The Old Man and the Sea and another was What's Eating Gilbert Grape. When I read those books, I thought, "That's what I want to do." It took seven years to get published and there were countless daily failures, but I'm glad those failures and rejections happened. They made me realise that what I was writing just wasn't good enough, so I made myself improve.
*Do you follow a set routine when you write?
I basically have two routines. The first one is the non-lazy routine, where I get up and work from about 7am and aim to finish by 11:30. That usually sees me through till noon or twelve-thirty (with some time-wasting in between). Then I'll take a long break and do a few more hours in the afternoon. The lazy routine usually starts at 10am and I'll write longer into the afternoon.
The only time these routines really change is at the start or end of a book, when I'm more likely to work at night. I can't face starting a book early in the morning purely because self-belief levels are at their lowest for me when I wake up. When I'm finishing a book, I will stay up longer and work through the night, mainly out of desperation to finally get it done.
*How did you come to write I Am The Messenger?
I was sitting in a park one night eating fish and chips and saw a bank with a fifteen minute parking zone out the front, and I thought, "Fifteen minutes, that's not very long, every time I go the bank it takes a lot longer than that." I then thought, "What if you were in that bank when it was being robbed and your car was out in the fifteen minute parking zone? How would you get out to move your car to avoid getting a fine?" That gave me the bungled bank robbery scene that led to everything else in the book.
*What do you do to get away from writing?
Living in Sydney, I've taken the chance to start surfing again. One of my best memories of growing up is catching my first proper wave and surfing across it and my brother cheering at me from the shore. Many years later, I've started up again and I'm really loving it, as long as the waves are small enough! I also watch a lot of movies, especially when I'm struggling with a story I'm working on. I like watching the same ones over and over again, so I half watch and half think about the story.
*Lastly, where do you get your ideas from?
I used to lie about this, but now I actually know:
I started writing when I was sixteen. I'm thirty now. I get my ideas from fourteen years of thinking about it.
A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR
13 Facts (+ a few more) about Markus Zusak
1.He has severe troubles writing biographies about himself because he doesn't find himself particularly inspiring.
2.He lives in Sydney near the Royal National Park, where he has lunch with the local deer, the kookaburras (a very tough brand of laughing birds) and other creatures.
3.He is a dog person, but he has two cats, Bijoux and Brutus. He named the second one.
4.His middle name is Frank. (When he hated the name Markus, his brother and one of his sisters suggested he use his middle name: Clearly, Frank was not really a step in the right direction.)
5.His three favorite books are:
1. What's Eating Gilbert Grape by Peter Hedges
2. The Half Brother by Lars Saabye Christensen
3. My Brother Jack by George Johnston
6.The last book he read was Werewolves in their Youth by Michael Chabon, and the book he is currently reading is Ulysses by James Joyce.
7.In 2005, he attempted to read 52 books. He is writing a book about this ridiculous reading challenge and calling it 53 Killers. People ask him, "Why fifty-three and not fifty-two?"
8.His three favorite movies are:
1. Amelie by John Pierre Juenet
2. The Big Lebowski by the Cohen Brothers
3. Run Lola Run by Tom Tykwer
(And although it's not a favorite, he also has a soft spot for The Goonies.)
9.The last movies he's seen are A Very Long Engagement and The Motorcycle Diaries.
10.If he could meet anyone who ever lived, he would choose Michelangelo.
11.He got the idea for I am the Messenger when he was sitting in a park one night eating fish and chips and saw a bank with a fifteen minute parking zone out front. He thought, "Fifteen minutes, that's not very long. every time I go the bank it takes a lot longer than that." He then thought, "What if you were in that bank when it was being robbed and your car was out in the fifteen minute parking zone? How the hell would you get out to move your car to avoid a fine?" (That's exactly what happens at the start of the book.)
12.He is riddled with self-doubt about I am the Messenger but is glad he wrote it because he loves The Doorman.
13.His favorite number is thirteen.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
128 of 128 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Magnificent Story,
By Tamela Mccann "taminator40" (Nashville, TN USA) - See all my reviews (VINE VOICE) (TOP 500 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
Liesel Meminger is a Book Thief, living with a foster family in Germany during World War Two. Torn from everything she's known, her foster father shows her the power of words as the two of them share late night reading sessions of The Grave Digger's Handbook. Her love of books ties her to others, including the mayor's wife and Max, the Jew the family hides in the basement.My own words escape me as I try to recount the beauty of this book in a short review. Rarely have I read a book as moving, as profound, as this one. Narrated by Death, this story is one that crawls under your skin and reverberates your soul with its images of Nazi Germany, friendship, and loss. The images stirred through Death's telling are so vivid, so wonderful, so tragic. Zusak has a masterful command of language and I was astounded by the way his words brought Liesel and her world to life. We follow Liesel over the years as she learns the true meaning of family through her caring new Papa and her friendships with Max and Rudy, the boy next door who idolizes Jesse Owens. Just a small list of images that will stay with me forever: +Liesel reading to the neighbors sitting terrified in a basement waiting for the bombs to fall around them +A snowball fight in a basement +Mama arriving at school to "yell" at Liesel +A boy with candlelit hair standing up to a Nazi Youth Leader +Death gathering up the souls of children softly +The story of a Word Shaker +An accordian player accepting a cigarette as payment There are not enough words within me to express the beauty of this book. It will move you to laughter and tears, often at the same time. This one is a keeper that I will revisit frequently in the future. It has changed my soul. Highly, highly, highly recommended.
725 of 760 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This book deserves more than 5,
By N. Gargano "nokegchris" (Waynesville NC and Bradenton, Fl) - See all my reviews (VINE VOICE) (REAL NAME)
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
I am not going to tell the plot of this book yet again, Amazon and some other reviewers have done it quite well...I will tell you that this is an astounding book, a beautiful book, and a book that I know I will read again and again......I read a lot, two to three books a week, my family makes fun that I "love" so many that I read...but in the past few years there have only been a handful of books that when I finish reading the book I sit and try to think of who I can send a copy to, who can I share this wonderful experience with. A book that when I finish, I want to go back to the beginning and start over. I am a little sorry it is listed as a young adult book, I feel that if the bookstores put it in the young adult section, so many people will be missing out on a wonderful experience. Yet it is important that younger readers, high school readers, read this book too. When I was growing up, I remember reading Diary of Anne Frank, and the feelings I had when I read it...and understanding the importance of everyone reading that book. Well, this book is that important, this book is a must read. I am going to go back and read this author's other book, I don't know how it can measure up to this one, but if it is half as good, I am in for a treat.
316 of 328 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Astounding,
By If you only read one book this year, read this one. Share it with your friends and family. I don't expect to read anything better this year, or next year either.
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Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs):
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grave handbook, word shaker, swampy eyes, standover man, dream carrier, book thief, duden dictionary, drop sheets Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Hans Hubermann, Himmel Street, Max Vandenburg, Liesel Meminger, Frau Holtzapfel, Rudy Steiner, Hitler Youth, Munich Street, Ilsa Hermann, Rosa Hubermann, Viktor Chemmel, Arthur Berg, The Whistler, Michael Holtzapfel, Hans Junior, Frau Diller, Amper River, Alex Steiner, Jesse Owens, Franz Deutscher, Reinhold Zucker, Sister Maria, Ludwig Schmeikl, Walter Kugler, Mein Kampf Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | First Pages | Surprise Me!
grave handbook, word shaker, swampy eyes, standover man, dream carrier, book thief, duden dictionary, drop sheets Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Hans Hubermann, Himmel Street, Max Vandenburg, Liesel Meminger, Frau Holtzapfel, Rudy Steiner, Hitler Youth, Munich Street, Ilsa Hermann, Rosa Hubermann, Viktor Chemmel, Arthur Berg, The Whistler, Michael Holtzapfel, Hans Junior, Frau Diller, Amper River, Alex Steiner, Jesse Owens, Franz Deutscher, Reinhold Zucker, Sister Maria, Ludwig Schmeikl, Walter Kugler, Mein Kampf Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | First Pages | Surprise Me!
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