“The Book Thief” by Markus Zusak is a novel about a young German girl named Liesel whose world is torn apart during World War II. Liesel resides with her adoptive parents, Hans and Rosa Hubermann, on Himmel Street in Munich, Germany. Her life and country is torn apart by war and the smell of death lingers in the air creating a world of desperation. Haunted by unsettling nightmares upon her arrival at her foster home, her foster father begins to teach her to read and the power of words. Through late night reading sessions, she learns of words from her first stolen book ‘The Grave Digger’s Handbook’. Liesel’s affection for words creates a bond with the mayor’s ‘crazy’ wife Ilsa and a Jewish man named Max hiding in her basement.

Becoming more daring, Liesel begins to steal books from Nazi-book burnings and Ilsa’s library. Himmel Street residents become hesitant of Hitler’s power over Germany as Liesel’s secrets begin to grow larger. The novel is narrated by Death that has seen and watched Liesel struggle of being a young German girl during the Führers rein.

Throughout  the novel Liesel evolves, and Death creates vivid images that show her true beauty, the innocence of not knowing. Through death, air raids, and despair, Liesel learns the true meaning of the power of words by sharing them with others. This gut-wrenching book expresses the nature of growing up young in Germany during World War II. “The Book Thief” is an achievement that will last a lifetime.