lu 06/12/2022
The book thief - a portrait of war?s victims
I don?t even know where to begin describing this book. While it took me nearly two months to finish it, it was surely one of the greatest experiences of my life, and I feel that I?ll never be able to leave this story behind.
The author wanted to tell a story - not only about a little girl named Liesel, the infamous book thief, but also about Germany and war and destruction and kindness. In order to do so, everything in this book is symbolic, and, to put that theory to the test, I?ll try to analyze some of its elements:
- Max?s dreams: Him fighting the Fuher over and over again, refusing to give up, represents his strong urge to live. The Fuher strategy, on the other hand, consists on discourse. He convinces the audience he is in the right and it is of the nation?s interest for them to help him massacre the Jew. He doesn?t coerce anyone into action, mind you. He simply speaks what was already on their minds. Which bring me to my next point.
- The power of words: By the end of the book, Liesel starts questioning ?What good are the words??. Words that left the Fuher?s mouth were responsible for the disaster that unfolded itself before her eyes. They terrorized, humiliated, murdered and persecuted millions. What could they possibly be good for, then? Well, I believe that, even unknowingly, she found the answer to her own question when she was given a small black book. With those blank pages in hand, she was finally able to tell her story. She held then the power to transform mere words into something way more meaningful, and become at last The Word Shaker.
- The characters: considering that there was a war happening in Germany at the time, it would be easy to assume that everyone was on their own. The only mistake in this logic is that humans are often the furthest thing from easy to comprehend. Every time I expected one to be selfish given the circumstances, they proved me wrong. When given six pieces of bread, Rudy would risk his life to give them to imprisoned Jews, despite his own empty stomach. An accordion, a debt and a promise lasted longer than a decade, saving a life even though it put three others at risk. A sorrowful woman that leaves her window open, knowing that she will be stolen from. As I was saying, kindness is found in the least expected places.
- Death as the narrator: The author definitely struck gold with this idea. This book?s unique storytelling is due to the direct, observant and somewhat poetic approach of the events. The dictionary entries, spoilers and comments certainly added a new level of depth and insight into the story.
- Rudy: I have a feeling that the sentence ?How about a kiss, Saumensch?? will haunt me until the day of my death. He, among not only other people in Himmel Street, but also the war victims from all countries involved, deserved better. Death is tired. We shall never give it such a demanding job again.
- Some speculation: This is purely one of my interpretations of the book, so don?t take it too seriously. I wonder if both Liesel?s and Death?s interpretations of the sky is something symbolic, the intentional contrast between light and darkness, life and death, innocence and terror, and how both of them coexist, even in wars.
All in all, this is undoubtedly a long, slow-paced book, and only your willpower will get you to the end. However, if you can overlook this downside, I promise you will not regret reading it.