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Metally.net Book Store - The Book Thief
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List Price: $11.99
Our Price: $6.70
Your Save: $ 5.29 ( 44% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Knopf Books for Young Readers
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Binding: Paperback
EAN: 9780375842207
ISBN: 0375842209
Label: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Manufacturer: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 576
Publication Date: 2007-09-11
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Reading Level: Young Adult
Release Date: 2007-09-11
Studio: Knopf Books for Young Readers
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating: 
Summary: The Book Thief: Insatiable for words
Comment: I was initially intrigued by the idea of death recounting the story of the little girl known as the "book thief." That is what drew me to this book.
I don't read many novels anymore, but when I do, I hope to find something entertaining. Or perhaps it could offer a refreshing new style (e.g. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time). Ideally, I also want to learn something new about the world around me, such as a historical period, a certain culture, or the human condition.
I found the plot of The Book Thief engrossing. The mind boggling cruelty that humanity inflicts upon itself is well articulated here -- so is the saving grace of friendship and love.
As for the style, it is quite original, but there are also points where descriptions are too long and far removed from any obvious meaning or emotion. In such instances, a reader like myself is apt to skip over countless paragraphs. No big deal, but still, I kept thinking "why be so wordy?" This book could have been edited to far fewer than 576 pages without sacrificing the depth of the storyline.
Beyond the style, The Book Thief offered a refreshing perspective: that of ordinary German citizens during the Hitler regime. Countless books have been written about the atrocities of the holocaust, but here we also get to glimpse the trials and tribulations many Germans had to endure. This was the part of the book I was most glad to discover.
All in all, an entertaining, although quite depressing, read.
Customer Rating:
Summary: What a Change of Pace
Comment: I read this book based on a friend's recommendation and I absolutely loved it. Zusak's style of writing, I found, was incredibly original. A definite page turner. I can't believe that people found this book to be confusing -- maybe out of the ordinary, but that was the beauty of it. A definite must read for adults.
Customer Rating:
Summary: This is a beautiful book!
Comment: I just finished reading The Book Thief and absolutely loved it. The only thing I do not understand is why it is billed as a 'young adult' novel. The content is serious and often quite disturbing. At no time did I feel like I was reading a 'teen' book. This is something that should be read by teens and adults alike.
I won't give a summary of the story - you can read that on the description of the book above. Just know that this is a beautiful book. I loved the writing style and how it was narrated by 'Death'. So cleverly written. This is a book that I want to press into the hands of everyone I know and say "Read this!" Bravo, Mr. Zusak, well done.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Spectacular
Comment: This is the best book I have read in years, and I am an avid reader. There are stunning bits of poetry on nearly every page. The "word pictures" as my 8-year-old calls them are elegant & positively evocative of the characters and setting. It was fun to recognize so many German phrases. And Hans is perhaps my favorite hero of fiction. My heart broke reading this book, not just because of tragedies, but because of the kindness and humanity of Hans Hubermann. I have recommended this book to everybody I know, my husband loved it, and I know that I will read it again.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Adult literature in the young adult section.
Comment: This is an unusual book. The sentence structure, the frequent bold print announcements, and the copious German language profanity were quite unexpected. The early chapters were a bit slow, and the perspective was so strange that it took me a while to get used to it. This novel did not hold my attention unfailingly, but in the end I was glad that I read the whole thing. It is a wonderful and worthwhile story.
I became fond of Liesel, papa and Rudy. They are fully believable, fully human characters. The author writes that they were the first characters he actually missed when the writing was done. I certainly miss them since I finished the story. Their love for each other was a wonderful thing to experience. The feelings between Liesel and Max were especially poignant. Zusak describes them in a realistic and heart wrenching way.
The choice of death as the narrator gave the book a unique flavor. While sergeant death is actually quite morbid at times, he or she is a sympathetic and understanding observer of human nature. In the early chapters I found this narrator to be a little too judgmental. I thought that some characters were typecast before I had a chance to know them. However, as the book progresses, these characters are revealed in more complex and realistic fashion. Zusak is a capable writer.
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Editorial Reviews:
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It’s just a small story really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery. . . .
Set during World War II in Germany, Markus Zusak’s groundbreaking new novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau.
This is an unforgettable story about the ability of books to feed the soul.
From the Hardcover edition.
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