"The Book Thief"

by Markus Zusak, 2005, 550pgs, rating=4

I read this book choppily through the week (finally finished it early last night) so I found myself anxious and fighting not to get lost. One can tell this is a schooled author because he writes with skill. His story telling is structured and calls for an alert reader. Although I may have missed something, it wasn't enough to miss what counted. It was a wonderful story of how powerful words can be ... to persuade, to excite, to invite, to hate, to love, etc. I enjoyed Leisel's, the book thief, adventures and looked forward to discover what was next ... or at times how it came to be because the narrator, Death, told you the future in advance. Genius writing because you might say, well he ruined the ending for me but the better picture was how it got there! Also, staged in Nazi Germany during World War II, the book had to have something to balance the trying time. It didn't fail! What a joy to read Rudy giving a teddy bear to a dying pilot. What a joy to read Leisel reading to all the families in the basement during an air raid. What a joy to read a family hiding a Jew. These and many more to document humanity in action. Oh, the many wonderful characters! I love that this book embraces human vitality. I'm sure glad I'm a human!! ~Thanks Melanie for recommending this book.

The only thing that hurt my eyes and hears was the swearing.