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The Book Thief was on a reading list for my daughter’s Grade Eleven English class and the title intrigued me, so I picked it up. I absolutely LOVED it. It is so creatively written and the “voice” of the book really put me in a place where I was able to read about a well-discussed topic (Germany in World War II) from a completely new perspective.

It is hard to talk about this book without giving too much away. As I mentioned, the story is set in Germany in World War II and centers around a German girl named Liesel Meminger. We are introduced to her at a time of great personal loss: the loss of her family and the death of her brother. She begins to steal books at her brother’s funeral (the first one from one of the gravediggers) and stealing books, as one can gather from the title, happens throughout the book; the reasons behind her book-stealing become clearer as the story unfolds. She is taken in by a foster family, and eventually, a Jewish man is hidden in the basement; a book is central to their friendship as well. All the while, as the story unfolds, there is an interesting voice from the sidelines adding a completely different set of eyes to what is going on. I enjoyed being drawn in by that voice, so I will leave that to you to discover; it is what makes the book so captivating.

I couldn’t put the book down and passed it on to both my daughters, my mother and have recommended it to anyone I could; including you. It is so well written; easy to read but with the kind of depth that leaves you thinking; an absolute pleasure to read.

– Teresa Klassen

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