The Book Thief by Markus Zusak was published in 2005 & adapted as a movie in 2013. This historical fiction is a widely read & loved book that I got to read only this year.
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
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The story is told by Death himself. Set in the Hitler Era in Germany , Death is busy at work . He is however, interested in the activities of a young girl – Liesel Meminger – who is our book thief . In a period when books were being burned & reading any un-sanctioned material was forbidden , Liesel managed to find & read a few books . She lives with her adopted parents, who in the course of the story provide shelter to a Jew on the run. There is young love in the mix too, with Rudy Steiner . This is a story with a little bit of everything.
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Told from Death’s perspective, he observes human tendencies & so the book strikes very powerful chords. The most impressive part of the book for me is Death’s attitude.
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“I have seen so many young men over the years, who think they are running at other young men. They are not. They are running at me” – Death
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“I am haunted by humans” – Death
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The book is emotionally strong and talks about the difficulties the Germans faced during the Hitler period. There are so many details to this book and reading it is an absolute must if you haven’t already.
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Markus took years to write this book & the Author’s amazing words reflect his skill and efforts. Some out of context phrases from the book that are brilliant ->
“Sure as hell wasn’t heaven” , “she had a face decorated with constant fury” , “killing himself for wanting to live”