Binding: Paperback
EAN: 9780552773898
ISBN: 0552773891
Label: Black Swan
Manufacturer: Black Swan
Number Of Pages: 560
Publication Date: January 01, 2008
Publisher: Black Swan
Sales Rank: 13
Studio: Black Swan

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Editorial Review:

Amazon.co.uk Review:
The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak was the best-selling debut literary novel of the year 2007, selling over 400,000 copies. The author is a prize-winning writer of children's books, and this, his first novel for adults, proved to be a triumphant success. The book is extraordinary on many levels: moving, yet restrained, angry yet balanced -- and written with the kind of elegance found all too rarely in fiction these days. The book's narrator is nothing less than Death itself, regaling us with a remarkable tale of book burnings, treachery and theft. The book never forgets the primary purpose of compelling the reader's attention, yet which nevertheless is able to impart a cogent message about the importance of words, particularly in those societies which regard the word as dangerous (the book is set during the Nazi regime, but this message is all too relevant in many places in the world today).

Nine-year-old Liesel lives with her foster family on Himmel Street during the dark days of the Third Reich. Her Communist parents have been transported to a concentration camp, and during the funeral for her brother, she manages to steal a macabre book: it is, in fact, a gravediggers’ instruction manual. This is the first of many books which will pass through her hands as the carnage of the Second World War begins to hungrily claim lives. Both Liesel and her fellow inhabitants of Himmel Street will find themselves changed by both words on the printed page and the horrendous events happening around them.

Despite its grim narrator, The Book Thief is, in fact, a life-affirming book, celebrating the power of words and their ability to provide sustenance to the soul. Interestingly, the Second World War setting of the novel does not limit its relevance: in the 20th century, totalitarian censorship throughout the world is as keen as ever at suppressing books (notably in countries where the suppression of human beings is also par for the course) and that other assault on words represented by the increasing dumbing-down of Western society as cheap celebrity replaces the appeal of books for many people, ensures that the message of Marcus Zusak’s book could not be more timely. It is, in fact, required reading -- or should be in any civilised country. --Barry Forshaw




Rating: - Average story but very original format.
While I enjoyed this novel I felt that beyond its unique structure it was not as brilliant as previous reviewers. The narrator is the Grim Reaper(Death) and he tells us who dies and the endings before telling us the details of the story, a quirky aspect I enjoyed. It is very accessible with short snappy chapters, an interesting look at ordinary decent Germans during WW2 and for a book which addresses the holocaust is not overly sentimental like most novels dealing with the issue. I would recommend ... Read More

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Rating: - An endearing tale...
The book thief is a beautiful story, you are drawn into little Leisel's life with her Mama and Papa. Her love of books and her new family grows as she does. The narration by death of this girls life is sometimes sad, funny and always touching.
A must read book!

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Rating: - An utterly amazing book - one of the best
I was a bit sceptical of this book at first and thought of it to be very unsettling but in the end it became my favourite of the many I have read. In some parts I laughed and in others I weeped but it came out tops overall.

The book is narrated by Death who comments a lot in the book and expains in a cold and sometimes warm heart what he is doing and what is happening. Leisel is a young german girl who has had a traumatic life and, after witnessing her own brother's death, is sent to a ... Read More

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Rating: - Disappointing waste of a story
Disappointing; I expected more but, for me, The Book Thief failed to deliver any lasting impact.

The story covers a few formative years in the life of Liesel, a young, orphaned, German girl growing into her early teens through the Second World War in a town near Munich and not far from Dachau. It chronicles a series of incidents that depict growing relationships in extraordinary circumstances, as the war takes its toll on the everyday life of a provincial town and its citizens.
... Read More

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Rating: - A hugely disappointing read.
During the summer I saw so many people with this novel and became interested in reading it for myself. A quick look at the back and I thought it sounded like an innovative take on a period of history which has understandably been the subject of so many well-told stories. I found the idea of death narrating particularly intriguing and so I settled down with my copy full of expectation. How disappointed I was!

I very quickly became annoyed with the voice of the narrator. It seemed stilted ... Read More

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