The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

"Imagine smiling after a slap in the face. Then think of doing it twenty-four hours a day.

That was the business of hiding a Jew."

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is a hauntingly beautiful portrait of Germany during World War II. In a country ruled by the Führer, a young girl learns the power of words. It's a power so raw and so great that it led her country to war. They have the power to comfort, to heal, to offer hope; as well as the ability to destroy, mutilate, and excuse cruelty.

On the front cover of this book, New York Times has been quoted as saying, "BRILLIANT and hugely ambitious . . . It's the kind of book that can be LIFE CHANGING." (Emphasis not mine.) That might actually be an understatement.

Written from the perspective of Death (a quite risky, yet fantastic move on the part of the author), the book is rife with deep imagery. Each new chapter, each new page, pulls you in with new fervency. In it's pages, you see things in a way you never expected to. Death weary of his job's hateful morbidity, Rudy's longing for Liesel, Liesel's longing for words and the care of those she loves.

Each new heartbreak for Liesel provides the same heartbreak for the reader. Packed with intensely beautiful imagery and scenes that could bring even the most cold-hearted to their knees, I can't tout the worth of The Book Thief enough. I believe that many parts of this story will stick with me for the rest of my life. I think I have another new favorite.

I couldn't agree more with the way Death phrases it in one of the last pages of his narrative,

"I wanted to ask her how the same thing could be so ugly and so glorious, and its words and stories so damning and brilliant."

Rating: ~★★★★★~