I have to admit that I was drawn to this novel solely because of the title. I love the idea of someone loving books so much that they would steal them. And, I should say upfront, that it delivered far beyond my expectations.
What I didn't realise was that this book is set in Nazi Germany during the Second World War and that it was sad. Really sad. I'm quite glad that I didn't know either of these things, because they would have put me off reading such a brilliant book. I'm really struggling these days with coping with sadness in books, and there really are so very many books and films about the holocaust, aren't there?
Of course, my ignorance didn't last very long. Within the first few paragraphs our narrator, death, is fairly explicit about the emotional roller coaster that we are about to board and the historical context in which it will take place. But, you see, by then I was hooked. That's how long it took: one paragraph, maybe two.
The book is the story of a young German girl, Liesel (or "the Book Thief"), who is traveling by train to Munich with her mother when she watches her younger brother die. This is when Death first encounters her and hangs around long enough to watch her steal her first book,
The Gravedigger's Handbook, from the cemetery where they bury her brother.
Liesel continues on to Munich where she is left with a new foster family, the kindly Hans Hubermann, who plays the accordion and occasionally paints houses, and tough-as-nails Rosa Hubermann, who calls her
Saumensch or
pig (which we will come to understand is a term of endearment). She begins school at the age of 10, unable to read, meets her neighbour, soon-to-be-bestfriend, Rudy Steiner, and plays football in the street. Every night she wakes up screaming after dreaming about her brother's death and Hans is there to comfort her and, soon enough, to teach her to read.
Things take a darker turn when the family takes in Max Vandenburg, a young Jewish man, and hide him in their basement. The tension created by that courageous act is then increased as bombs begin to fall on Munich.
Despite the grim subject matter, this is such a beautiful story. At its heart it is the story of a young girl coming of age and learning the power of words and of love. Her relationships with Hans, Rudy, Max and even Rosa are so carefully developed and feel so utterly real that it is impossible to distance yourself from emotional vulnerability that is part and parcel of such strong friendships.
As for the sadness, well I'm not giving anything away when I say that I cried myself to sleep after finishing this book. Our kindly narrator essentially gives it all away in the first few pages. But that is what makes this book so wonderful. It is not held together with the suspense of wondering
what is going to happen, it is held together with the story of
why we should care.
