I decided to try out another young adult work of fiction The Book Thief by Australian writer Markus Zusak. For those who are put off by the idea of a young adult novel, Zusak's writing is dense and poetic, it's obviously for more advanced readers.The novel is set in Nazi Germany and is (aptly) narrated by Death. The story follows a young orphan Liesel Meminger and her life on Himmel Street with her foster parents. Liesel steals her first book just before arriving, and her kindly foster father soon teachers her how to read.
As the war unfolds, Liesel steals more books and develops friendships an assortment of strange characters: Max, the Jew hiding in her foster families' basement; local neighbor Rudy who infamously covered himself in black coal to emulate American sprinter Jesse Owens; and the grieving mayor's wife who assists Liesel in her book thieving in unexpected ways.
Zusak has created an engrossing story about a child that can find beauty during violent times. His use of Death as an omnipresent narrator works overall, because, as Zusak explains "Death is on hand to see all the terrible things humans do to each other."
