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Cover of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

The Book Thief

  • 560 pages · about 9 hours
  • First published 2005
  • 109 editions

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1 About this book

The extraordinary, beloved novel about the ability of books to feed the soul even in the darkest of times. When Death has a story to tell, you listen. It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.

Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who 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.

In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak, author of I Am the Messenger, has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time.

  • History Germany
  • Historical fiction
  • Books and reading
  • Jewish people
  • World War II
  • Rescues
  • Storytelling
  • Death

2 What to expect

Death narrates the story of a girl in Nazi Germany who steals books and shares them. Long, lyrical and heartbreaking.

Good for readers who want: historical fiction, World War II, and a long read.

3 About Markus Zusak

Born 1975

Markus Zusak (born 23 June 1975) is an Australian-German writer. He is best known for The Book Thief and The Messenger, two novels that became international bestsellers. He won the Margaret Edwards Award in 2014.

Bio adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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