The Book Thief

The grim reaper himself narrates The Book Thief, which is probably appropriate for any book set in World War II Germany. As he himself notes, there was no shortage of work for him in that time and in that place.

It is with a sense of foreboding, then, that the reader dives into the story of Liesel Meminger, a 10-year-old foster girl who is haunted by her brother's death and mother's absence. Taken in by Rosa and Hans Hubermann, Liesel becomes especially close to her accordion-playing foster father who teaches her to read and, in so doing, gives her an abiding love for books so strong that she will stop at nothing to obtain them.

This is Liesel's story, but the backdrop, of course is World War II. Some of the Hubermann's neighbors are Nazis, some are undecided, and some are decidedly not. Each must navigate the war carefully; each must eventually face the music of the falling bombs.

The Book Thief is a rare book, with a unique - and searing - perspective. Markus Zusak's greatest accomplishment in writing it is undoubtedly the way in which he humanizes the German people, telling their story from the perspective of those too young to fully grasp what is happening but caught just the same, as the grim reaper reminds us early and often, in the mounds of rubble.

Although classified as a Young Adult (YA) book, I can easily recommend The Book Thief to young and old alike. This is a remarkable novel, one that will undoubtedly figure on my "best of" list at the end of the year.