The Book

Thief

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Text (of novel) The text of this novel was adopted and modified from the

text of the original novel and from text at (from) the

following websites:

https://www.litcharts.com/lit/the-book-thief/characters

https://www.gradesaver.com/the-book-thief/study-guide/character-list

https://www.gradesaver.com/the-book-thief/study-guide/summary-prologue

Table of Contents

Pages

Main Characters ………………………………………………….. i-viii

Prologue …………………………………………………………… 1-2

Part 1 ………………………………………………………………. 3-7

Part 2 ………………………………………………………………. 8-11

Part 3 ………………………………………………………………. 12-15

Part 4 ………………………………………………………………. 16-21

Part 5………………………………………………………………. 22-25

Part 6 ………………………………………………………………. 26-28

Part 7 ………………………………………………………………. 29-33

Part 8 ………………………………………………………………. 34-38

Part 9 ………………………………………………………………. 39-42

Part 10 ……………………………………………………………... 43-47

Epilogue ……………………………………………………………. 48-49

Main Characters

Liesel Meminger

A young girl who lived with Hans and Rosa Hubermann, her foster parents.

Liesel's real parents, who were communists, were probably killed by the

Nazis, and her brother Werner died in the story's first scene. Liesel

experienced great suffering in the novel, but through learning to read,

stealing a series of different books, and her relationship with her foster

parents, her friend Rudy, and a Jewish young man named Max whom the

Hubermanns hid in their basement for a time, she grew from a troubled girl

into a young adult who cared about others.

Death

The narrator of the novel. The mysterious figure who collected human souls

when they died. Death was mystified by the contradictory nature of

humans—both beautiful and ugly. As World War II continued, and he must

collect so many souls, he became tired due to his work.

Hans Hubermann

Liesel's foster father, a house painter and accordion player. Hans was kind

and gentle. He didn’t like the Nazis. Liesel grew closer to Hans than to

anyone else, and it was he who taught her to read.

i

Max Vandenburg

A Jew who hid in the Hubermanns' basement. Max arrived sick, but he

soon joined the family and kept himself alive through a strong hatred of

Hitler. Max was also an artist and a writer.

Rudy Steiner

Liesel's neighbor and best friend. Rudy loved Liesel from the start and was

always asking her for a kiss. Rudy seemed like Hitler's "Aryan ideal" – he

was blonde, blue-eyed, and a very good student and athlete. Rudy hated

the Hitler Youth (group) and Hitler. He became Liesel's partner in their

adventures.

Ilsa Hermann

The mayor's wife in the town where the Hubermanns lived and one of

Rosa's washing customers. She introduced Liesel to her library, and gave

Liesel books and allowed Liesel to steal them from her. Ilsa started out

hardly able to speak, but by the novel's end she encouraged Liesel to write

and then took her in after the bombing.

Adolf Hitler

The Führer (leader) of Nazi Germany. Hitler never physically appeared in

the story, but he stood as a symbol for all the evil caused by the Nazis and

ii

the war. His book Mein Kampf played a major role in the plot.

Minor Characters Rosa Hubermann Liesel's foster mother. She was a loud, impatient woman who liked to cuss

and insult everyone. Under her angry exterior, Rosa had a brave, caring

heart, and she took in Liesel and Max without question.

Alex Steiner Rudy's father. A tailor who was drafted because he refused to send Rudy

away to Nazi school. Alex survived the war and returned home after the

final bombing. He and Liesel became friends at the end of the novel, as the

only two survivors of Himmel Street.

Frau Holtzapfel The Hubermanns' neighbor who didn’t like Rosa for a long time. After the

first air raid, she asked Liesel to read out loud to her and she slowly grew

friendlier. Later, she had to deal with the deaths of both of her sons.

Michael Holtzapfel Frau Holtzapfel's son who survived the war at Stalingrad. He watched his

brother die. Michael suffered from survivor's guilt, and later hung himself.

iii

Hans Hubermann, Junior The Hubermanns' grown son, a patriotic Nazi who insulted his father and

left the family because Hans didn’t support Hitler.

Tommy Müller A neighbor and classmate of Rudy and Liesel's. He was physically weak

and hard of hearing.

Franz Deutscher The leader of Rudy's Hitler Youth squad. He enjoyed punishing Rudy and

Tommy for no reason.

Arthur Berg The first leader of the apple-stealing gang. He made friends with Liesel and

Rudy and treated the other kids in his group fairly.

Viktor Chemmel The stealing gang's second leader, a cruel boy who took advantage of his

own group and attacked Rudy and Liesel.

Walter Krugler Max Vandenburg's friend and former boxing opponent. He saved Max from

being arrested and helped him get to Hans.

iv

Trudy Hubermann The Hubermanns' daughter; quiet and not close to her parents. Reinhold Zucker A young man in Hans' division of the LSE (in the army). He had a bad

temper that got him killed when he took Hans' seat in the truck.

Erik Vandenburg Max's father, a Jewish accordion player who made friends with Hans in

World War I and saved his life by volunteering him to write letters on the

day of battle. Hans promised Erik's wife that he would help her, if she or

her family ever needed help.

Frau Diller A resident of Himmel Street who owned a store. He loved his country and

made everyone salute Hitler before she would speak to them.

Werner Meminger Liesel's younger brother, who died on a train at the beginning of the novel

and then regularly appeared in her dreams.

Robert Holtzapfel Frau Holtzapfel's other son, who Death collected in a hospital after his legs

were blown off at Stalingrad.

v

Pfiffikus A crazy man of Himmel Street who liked to whistle and cuss a lot. Jesse Owens An African-American athlete who won four gold medals in the 1936

Olympics in Hitler's Germany. He was not present in the story, but was

Rudy's hero and a symbol of opposition to the "Aryan ideal."

Sister Maria Liesel's teacher who gave many beatings. Ludwig Schmeikl A boy who made fun of Liesel for not being able to read, but then she

(Liesel) beat him up. Later the two of them apologized to each other.

Johann Hermann Ilsa Hermann's son, who died in World War I. Otto Sturm A wealthy boy who delivered food to the Catholic priests on his bike. Liesel

and Rudy stole his basket one day.

https://www.litcharts.com/lit/the-book-thief/characters

vi

Paula Meminger

Liesel's mother, who gave her up for adoption to the Hubermann's at the

beginning of the novel. Liesel's father and mother were taken away by the

Nazis for being a communist.

Frau Heinrich

Woman from the foster care agency who helped with the transfer of Liesel

to the Hubermanns.

Andy Schmeikl

Ludwig's older brother.

Heinz Hermann

Mayor of Molching and Ilsa's husband.

Fritz Hammer

An older boy who introduced Liesel and Rudy to the gang of thieves when

Arthur Berg was their leader.

Stephan Schneider

Hans' Sergeant in World War I.

Thomas Mamer

A shop owner who caught Rudy trying to steal a potato and threatened to

call the police, but let him go when he was sure of how poor Rudy was.

vii

Kurt Steiner

Rudy's older brother.

Barbara Steiner

Rudy's mother.

Boris Schipper

Sergeant of the Air Raid Special Unit, of which Hans became a member.

https://www.gradesaver.com/the-book-thief/study-guide/character-list

viii

Prologue

Death is the narrator of the book. After a person dies, Death carried

their soul off from their body.

Death introduced the story of a person that always survived; later

identified as Liesel Meminger. Death briefly described three episodes in

which Death interacted with Liesel. Death described three key events,

expanded later in the book, in the following three parts of the prologue:

1. BESIDE THE RAILWAY LINE [Described in Part One]

Death described the blinding white of the snow, two guards, one

mother and daughter, and one corpse on the ground close to a stopped

train. The guards argued over what to do with the corpse. Death became

curious about the girl. The girl (daughter) was described as "the book thief"

and her name was Liesel.

2. THE ECLIPSE [Part Nine]

A plane crashed, and a boy with a toolbox, later revealed to be Rudy

Steiner, arrived first at the scene. Liesel, the book thief, arrived next, and

even though "years had passed," Death recognized her. The boy took a

teddy bear out of his toolbox and put it on the pilot's chest, and a crowd

appeared. The pilot's face appeared to be smiling; Death called this a "final

dirty joke". Death carried off the pilot's soul. The pilot was an American who

has just participated in an air raid. Rudy, Liesel, and the rest of crowd had

just come from bomb shelters.

1

3. THE FLAG [Part Ten]

Death: "The last time I saw her it was red." This is the fiery sky of a

massive bombing raid. Death found piled bodies stuck to the street. This

was caused by hurled bombs, thrown down by humans hiding in the

clouds. Death found the book thief kneeling among rubble, holding a book.

Death wanted to make her feel better, but "that is not allowed." Instead,

Death followed her. She dropped a book and Death later took it from a

garbage truck.

Death explained that these three colors -- red, white, black –

reminded him of Liesel, and drew them on the page as a dash of red, a

circle of white, and a swastika for black. These were the colors and

symbols of the Nazi flag.

The capacity of men to do evil, along with the capacity of men to do

good, is a central theme of The Book Thief. Hitler and Stalin represented

one extreme, Liesel and Hans Hubermann the other.

2

Part 1

The novel began in January 1939. Liesel Meminger was 9 years old.

ARRIVAL ON HIMMEL STREET

On a snowy night, the book thief Liesel Meminger and her six-year-

old brother Werner were traveling with their mother by train to Munich. In

Munich, Liesel and her brother were to be given to foster parents. Half

asleep, Liesel dreamt of Adolf Hitler speaking at a rally where Hitler smiled

at Liesel, and Liesel, who could not read, greeted him in broken German.

As Liesel's mother slept, Liesel saw Werner die, and Death took Werner's

spirit. Death stuck around to watch what happened next. The train stopped

due to track work, and the three exited with two guards who argued over

what to do with the body.

Two days later, Liesel's brother was buried by two gravediggers.

Feeling sad, Liesel dug at her brother's grave, but was carried away by her

mother. Before leaving on another train, Liesel stole a black book from the

cemetery.

In Munich, Liesel was given to foster care authorities and driven to

Himmel ("Heaven") Street in the small town of Molching. In that town was

the home of Rosa Hubermann. She was a woman with a short temper, and

her husband Hans Hubermann, a tall quiet man who rolled his own

cigarettes. At first, Liesel refused to get out of the car; only Hans was able

to talk her into getting out. Liesel had a small suitcase containing clothes

and the stolen book: The Grave Digger's Handbook.

3

GROWING UP A SAUMENSCH

Death remarked that Liesel would steal several books and be made

to by a hidden Jew.

Liesel was very malnourished upon arrival. Her father was a

communist, but she did not yet know what this meant. Liesel felt

abandoned by her mother, but understood that she was being "saved" from

poverty and persecution. Rosa, described as loving Liesel, often cussed at

Liesel, calling her a saumensch ("pig girl") when she refused to have a

bath. Hans, described as a house painter and accordion player, acted more

kindly, teaching Liesel to roll a cigarette. Liesel began to call her foster

parents "Mama" and "Papa."

THE WOMAN WITH THE IRON FIST

For the first few months, Liesel had a nightmare about her brother

every night and wet the bed. Hans would come in and sit with her. Secretly,

Liesel kept The Grave Digger's Handbook under her bed; even though she

couldn’t read the title.

Liesel began school, but was forced into a much younger class of

students just learning the alphabet. In February, Liesel turned ten and was

made to enroll into the Hitler Youth. Hans went to a bar some evenings to

play the accordion for money. Rosa, who did laundry for wealthier

neighbors, took Liesel on deliveries. Rosa made Liesel deliver a bag to the

mayor's house, where the mayor's wife silently took it. Frau Holtzapfel, a

neighbor who had been mad at Rosa for a long time, spit on the

4

Hubermann's door every night, and Liesel had to clean it.

THE KISS (A Childhood Decision Maker)

Himmel was a poor street. Some of the neighbors included: Rudy

Steiner, one of six who lived next door to the Hubermanns; Frau Diller, an

Aryan cornershop owner; Tommy Muller, a kid suffering from ear infections;

and Pfiffikus, a mean man. The neighborhood kids played soccer with

garbage cans for goals, and Liesel was made to be goalie. Rudy fired a

shot, but Liesel blocked it; in response, Rudy hit Liesel with a snowball.

Rudy was made to walk Liesel to school, and he liked her. He

explained that Frau Diller liked the Nazi Party so much that she refused

service to anyone who did not say "Heil Hitler" upon entering her shop.

They passed Rudy's father's tailor shop, then a street of broken, empty

homes labeled with yellow Stars of David. At school, Rudy often went

looking for Liesel even though others thought she was stupid. Rudy was in

love with Liesel. The two raced the hundred meters and Rudy bet a kiss on

it. They both slipped before the finish, but Rudy said that one day Liesel

would "be dying to kiss" him.

THE JESSE OWENS INCIDENT

A flashback to 1936, when Jesse Owens, the black American runner,

won four gold medals at the Berlin Olympics, embarrassing Hitler and the

racist Nazis. Rudy, obsessed with the achievement, painted himself black

with charcoal and ran the 100 meter relay on an empty track, imagining

5

himself to be Owens. Rudy's father, Alex Steiner, drug his son home and

lectured him not to pretend to be black or Jewish because of the Nazis'

racial policies. Alex was a member of the Nazi Party, but not a racist, and

would do anything to support his family, even if that meant being in the

party.

THE OTHER SIDE OF SANDPAPER

In May, brown-shirted Nazis marched through town. Hans was not a

supporter of Hitler. After one of Liesel's nightmares, Hans found her book

and agreed to read it to her. Hans, a poor reader himself, was confussed

by the book about grave-digging, but read to the young girl anyway. Hans

found that Liesel couldn’t read any words herself, so he began teaching her

the alphabet using sandpaper and a painter's pencil.

THE SMELL OF FRIENDSHIP

Hans continued reading to and teaching Liesel every night after her

nightmares. Hans even went with Liesel when Rosa made her do laundry

deliveries. Hans and Liesel began working in the basement, where they

used paint on the cement wall for their lessons.

THE HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION OF THE SCHOOL-YARD

In September, Germany invaded Poland, starting World War II.

Rationing began as England and France joined the fight against Germany.

Liesel was moved up to the same class as Rudy and Tommy, the proper

level for her age. All the students, but Liesel, were made to read. At the

6

end, Rudy told the teacher that Liesel hadn’t read. Liesel couldn’t read her

piece, so she instead began to recite a chapter from The Grave Digger's

Handbook, which she memorized from Hans' readings. Sister Maria (the

teacher) took Liesel into the corridor and gives her a watschen (beating) as

the class laughed.

Later, Liesel was teased by her classmate Ludwig Schmeikl. Rudy

told her to ignore Ludwig, but she instead beat him badly. Still mad, she

also punched Tommy a few times and announced to the stunned crowd of

students, "I'm not stupid." Back in class, Sister Maria punished Liesel with a

severe watschen.

7

Part 2

A GIRL MADE OF DARKNESS

Death explained that Liesel Meminger would steal her second book,

The Shoulder Shrug, from a book burning on Hitler's birthday and hinted at

many of the events that followed. Death remarked that Nazi Germany was

built on burning: synagogues, houses, Reichstags, and books.

THE JOY OF CIGARETTES

In late 1939, Liesel, despite having nightmares about her dead

brother still, had settled into life in Molching. She loved her foster parents

Hans and Rosa. Her best friend was Rudy Steiner, and her reading and

writing was improving. In December, Hans finished reading The Grave

Digger's Handbook to Liesel.

On Christmas, the Hubermanns' adult children Hans Junior and

Trudy visited, and Liesel, not expecting to get anything at all because of the

family's lack of money, received two books: Faust the Dog and The

Lighthouse. Hans had traded his precious cigarette rations for them.

THE TOWN WALKER

Rosa lost a laundry customer because the war forced him to cut

back. Rosa forced Liesel to pick up and deliver the laundry, thinking the

customers might feel sorry for Liesel. One customer, the mayor's wife Frau

Hermann, never spoke. In school, Liesel received an assignment to write a

8

letter to a classmate and decided instead to write to her birth mother. Hans

was somewhat disturbed by this and suggested that Frau Heinrich, from

the foster care office, could send the letter. Later, Liesel overheard Hans

and Rosa discussing her mother, with Rosa asking, "Who knows where she

is? Who knows what they've done to her?"

DEAD LETTERS

In early 1940, Liesel checked the mail every day, but did not receive

an answer from her mother. Liesel wrote several more letters to her

mother, but didn’t send them. Rosa lost another customer. On Liesel's

birthday, she didn’t receive any presents, but wanted to use some of the

ironing money to mail her letters. When Liesel admitted to stealing the

money, Rosa started beating her, but immediately stopped and apologized

when Liesel said that she mailed her letters. Liesel realized that she would

never see her mother again, and stayed on the kitchen floor, not able to

move. She shed a single yellow tear.

HITLER'S BIRTHDAY, 1940

To celebrate Hitler's birthday, a book burning was prepared in

Molching. Propaganda, banned and censored books, and written material

from the era between World War I to the rise of the Nazis was collected.

Every house put up a flag, and the Hubermanns panicked when they briefly

couldn’t find theirs. The Hubermann children, Hans Junior and Trudy,

arrived. Trudy was a maid in Munich, Hans Junior was a soldier and

9

fanatical Nazi. Hans Senior was not a Nazi, and he blew his chance to join

the party for painted over anti-Jewish slurs. The father and son argued a

lot; Hans Junior accused his father of being disloyal to Germany and asked

why Liesel wasn't reading Hitler's book Mein Kampf. Hans Junior then

called his father a coward for doing nothing while "a whole nation cleans

out the garbage and makes itself great" and stormed out. Death explained

that Hans Junior would end up at the Battle of Stalingrad, where Death was

extremely busy carrying the souls of dead soldiers.

100 PURE GERMAN SWEAT

The Hitler Youth divisions marched at the book burning then went

away. Carts of banned material were dumped in the town square. Even

though she loved books, Liesel was excited by the prospect of the fire, and

Death wondered simply if "humans like to watch a little destruction." A man

at a podium gave a speech against Jews and communists, and Liesel

suddenly made the connection between Nazism and what had happened to

her family, as her father was a communist. As the crowd yelled "Heil Hitler!"

and the books were set on fire, Liesel became sick and tried to escape.

Death wondered if anyone ever got injured performing a Nazi salute and

said that no one ever died from it, except for the forty million people Death

picked up.

Liesel ran into Ludwig Schmeikl, who had been injured in the crowd.

She pulled him away to the steps of the church then apologized for beating

him.

10

THE GATES OF THIEVERY

Hans met Liesel at the church steps, and she asked him if her mother

was a communist. Hans lied and said he did not know. Liesel asked if Hitler

took her mother away, and Hans, found it impossible to lie, said yes. Liesel

said she hated Hitler, and Hans, worried about what to do, slapped her and

told her to never say that again. Hans forced Liesel to do a proper Nazi

salute and say "Heil Hitler."

BOOK OF FIRE

Hans left Liesel to talk to a friend. Hans admitted he was not getting

much work as a painter because he was not a member of the Nazi Party.

Liesel went up to the heap of the book burning as workers took away

ashes. Liesel saw three books that were not burned very much and she

stole a blue book called The Shoulder Shrug. She put it under her shirt

even though it was still hot. Although she was ignored by the workmen,

Liesel realized that one person saw her steal the book: the mayor's wife,

Frau Hermann.

Hans and Liesel walked home as smoke rose.

11

Part 3

THE WAY HOME

Liesel showed Hans the book she stole from the book burning, The

Shoulder Shrug. Hans examined it and became worried about what the

book was about and worried what might happen because Liesel stole the

book. Hans asked Liesel if she would keep a secret for him should he ask,

and Liesel promised yes. Later, Hans purchased a copy of Mein Kampf

from the Nazi Party office and overheard party officials say that Hans'

application to join the party would never be approved.

THE MAYOR'S LIBRARY

Liesel was worried because Ilsa Hermann, the mayor's wife, had

seen her steal the book. Rosa forced Liesel to deliver laundry to Ilsa's

home. Liesel felt better when Ilsa, noticing Rudy, took the laundry and said

nothing.

A few weeks later, Liesel returned to the mayor's house to pick up

laundry. Unusually, Ilsa invited Liesel inside. Ilsa brought Liesel into her

home library stocked with books. Excited, Liesel ran her hands along the

shelves. She helped Ilsa put away a stack of books then departed, laundry

in hand. On her way home, Liesel wondered why she said nothing to even

thank Ilsa for showing her the library and decided to run back. This time the

mayor, Heinz Hermann, answered the door, and Liesel said "thank you"

and left.

12

ENTER THE STRUGGLER

The setting changed to Stuttgart, where a starving Jew named Max

Vandenburg was hiding alone in a storage room. A friend entered briefly

and gave Max some food and a book secretly containing a card, map, key,

and directions. The friend promised to return in a few days. Max was to

travel to the home of a stranger, Hans Hubermann.

THE ATTRIBUTES OF SUMMER

In the summer of 1940, Liesel and Hans read The Shoulder Shrug, a

book banned because one of the main characters was a Jew. Ilsa began

allowing Liesel to read in her library during deliveries. On one such

occasion, Liesel found the name "Johann Hermann" written on a book

cover. Johann was Ilsa's son who died in 1918, the final year of World War

I. Ilsa said he froze to death. Ilsa still suffered because of her son's death,

and Liesel told her, "I'm sorry."

Food was scarce for both Rudy and Liesel's families, and one day

they saw an older boy, Fritz Hammer, eating an apple. They followed him

to a group of four boys led by a 15-year-old thief, Arthur Berg. The boys

recognized Liesel for beating up Ludwig Schmeikl and Rudy for the Jesse

Owens incident. The boys let Liesel and Rudy go with them to steal apples

and told them that if they got caught they would be left behind. Afterwards,

Rudy and Liesel received a dozen apples for their work and ate all of them.

Liesel vomited later.

13

THE ARYAN SHOPKEEPER

Rudy and Liesel found a coin on the ground and bought from Frau

Diller, a single piece of candy, which they took turns sucking on.

THE STRUGGLER, CONTINUED

The story of Max Vandenburg was started again. Max's friend Walter

Kugler returned to the storage room and said he was being shipped out in

the army. Walter left a ticket and shaving materials. Nervous, Max left his

hiding place and boarded a train with the book he was given earlier, Mein

Kampf.

TRICKSTERS

Rosa lost another laundry customer. Rudy and Liesel stole from more

farms with Arthur Berg. One day, Liesel and Rudy robbed a classmate

named Otto Sturm who, every Friday, delivered goods to the church on his

bicycle. Liesel and Rudy knocked Otto off his bike and took the package,

which contained eggs, bread, and a ham. They took the package to Arthur,

who called the rest of the boys and cooked the food. Liesel and Rudy

returned the empty basket to Otto. A few days later, Liesel and Rudy went

stealing again, but are confronted with an ax-wielding farmer. While making

their escape, Rudy got caught on the fence. The rest of the boys ran, but

Liesel and Arthur went back to help him even though Arthur said earlier he

wouldn't.

Later, Arthur moved to Cologne and gave Liesel and Rudy a bag of

14

chestnuts as a gift. Death explained that Arthur lived through the war, but

saw him once with his dying sister during a bombing raid.

THE STRUGGLER, CONTINUED

Max finally arrived at the Hubermanns' home.

15

Part 4

THE ACCORDIONIST (The Secret Life of Hans Hubermann)

Max was standing in the Hubermanns' kitchen. He asked Hans if he

still played the accordion, and Hans said yes.

The rest of this section is a flashback to Hans' past.

Hans was a 22-year-old soldier who fought in France in World War I.

He did not want to fight. Hans made friends with a German Jew named Erik

Vandenburg, who taught Hans to play the accordion. The day the platoon

was to go into battle, the Sergeant asked which one of them had good

handwriting. No one volunteered. The Sergeant said that whichever man

had good handwriting would not be going to battle. No man wanted to

seem like a coward. Erik nominated Hans, who was sent to write letters for

the captain. The rest of the men were killed.

Hans kept Erik's accordion and tracked down his family to tell them

what happened. Hans credited Erik with saving his life. Hans was surprised

to find that Erik had a young son named Max. Hans left Erik's widow with

his name and address and offered to help if they should need anything.

Hans returned to Munich and worked as a painter. He and Rosa had

two children, Hans Junior and Trudy. In 1933, Hitler rose to power, and

Hans thought that he did not hate the Jews, because a Jew saved his life

and many of his customers were Jewish. As the persecution of the Jews

16

picked up, Hans steadily lost business because he was not a member of

the Nazi Party. In 1937, Hans applied to join; afterwards he saw a Jew-

owned store vandalized and grafittied. Over the owner's objection, Hans

offered to repaint the door. Angry over what he has seen, Hans punched

through the door and window of the Nazi Party office and told a member

that he couldn’t join. In 1938, the Jews were cleared out of town and Hans'

home was searched by the Gestapo. Luckily, Hans, whose application was

added to a waiting list and not withdrawn, was allowed to stay. Hans was

not excluded by his neighbor in part because he played the accordion

warmly. In 1939, six months before Liesel's arrival, Hans was approached

by a man named Walter Kugler, who asked if Hans could keep a promise.

A GOOD GIRL

The scene from earlier resumed. It was November 1940 and Max

was 24. Liesel saw Hans and the stranger standing in the kitchen, and

Hans told her to go back to bed. Hans told Max not to worry about Liesel.

A SHORT HISTORY OF THE JEWISH FIST FIGHTER

This section is a flashback to Max's past. Growing up, Max loved to

fight. His father died when he was two. When Max was nine his mother

didn’t have any money and the two moved in to his uncle's home, with six

cousins. When Max was thirteen, his uncle died. Watching his uncle die

quietly, Max thought that he would never die without a fight, and said

"When death captures me, he will feel my fist on his face."

17

As a teenager, Max continued fighting among a group of friends and

enemies. Max fought a kid named Walter Kugler and won. The two went on

to fight thirteen more times, and they became good friends. In 1935, Max

lost his job because he was Jewish. The Nurmenburg Laws were passed,

forbidding Jews from having German citizenship and marrying Germans.

On November 9, 1938, Kristallnacht ("Night of Broken Glass"), Jewish

stores and homes across Germany were attacked. Walter provided an

opportunity for Max to hide, but Max didn’t want to leave his family; he

finally did so. Max's mother gave Max a piece of paper with Hans

Hubermann's name and address.

Max hid in a storeroom for two years, and Walter visited him every

once in a while with food. One day, Walter told Max that Max's family was

gone. In 1939, Walter visited Hans, who agreed to keep his promise and

help Max. Hans gave Walter some money, maps, directions, and a copy of

Mein Kampf with a key, and in 1940 Max made the dangerous journey to

Molching.

THE WRATH OF ROSA

Rosa found Max and Hans in the kitchen and gave Max some pea

soup. Liesel silently watched them. Max vomited because his hunger had

made him less able to hold down food.

LIESEL'S LECTURE

Max slept in a spare bed in Liesel's room. The next morning Liesel

18

was kept home from school. In the basement, Hans told Liesel about what

happened to him in the war. Hans told Liesel that she should never tell

anyone about Max. Hans explained what would happen if she did. Hans

would burn Liesel's books, Liesel would be taken away, and Hans, Rosa,

and Max would all be taken away and never return. Liesel cried

uncontrollably.

THE SLEEPER

Max slept for three days, and Liesel watched him. When Max woke

up, Liesel was staring at him.

THE SWAPPING OF NIGHTMARES

Max decided he would sleep in the cold basement from then on,

hidden by a drop sheet and some paint cans. Max felt guilty and ashamed

to go on hiding. After a few days, Liesel took dinner down to Max. She saw

Max reading Mein Kampf and tried to ask if it was a good book, but failed.

In the weeks that followed, Rosa acted very sad. She lost another

laundry customer, but did not yell about it. Rudy and Liesel walked to

school as usual, and Rudy mentioned a Hitler Youth leader named Franz

Deutscher. Liesel still visited Ilsa Hermann and was interested in a book

called The Whistler. Meanwhile Max's health got worse in the cold

basement.

19

In early December, Hans took Liesel to the basement to start their

lessons again and found Max cold and sick. Max began sleeping on the

floor by the fire in Hans and Rosa's bedroom. At Christmas, Hans Junior

did not come home, but Trudy did. Trudy was not told about Max. Max

apologized for Hans' son not coming home, and Hans said that his son had

the right to be stubborn.

Max overheard Liesel say that his hair looked like feathers. By the

fire, Liesel finally asked Max whether Mein Kampf was a good book, and

Max said that it is saved his life. Max began telling the story of his life over

the next few weeks. Hans remarked that Liesel, too, enjoyed fighting, and

Liesel was surprised that he knew about the time she beat up Ludwig

Schmeikl.

Max and Liesel both had nightmares, and one night Liesel asked Max

about them. Max told her he saw himself waving goodbye to his family, and

Liesel told him about her brother. Liesel brought Max a newspaper she

found in a garbage can, and Max happily did the crossword. On Liesel's

birthday, Hans and Rosa gave her The Mud Men, a book about a "strange

father and son," and Max apologized for not getting her anything. Liesel

hugged Max for the first time, and Max wondered what he could do for her.

PAGES FROM THE BASEMENT

Max cut out pages from Mein Kampf and painted them white. He

drew on them a story called The Standover Man, which he gave to Liesel.

20

Liesel read it three times then went down to the basement and slept beside

Max.

21

Part 5

THE FLOATING BOOK (Part I)

This section predicted events that happened later in the book. Rudy

was standing in icy water, holding a soggy book and asked Liesel for a

kiss. Death admitted that Rudy would die and said he would have liked to

have witnessed Liesel kissing his dead body.

THE GAMBLERS (A SEVEN-SIDED DIE)

A series of events over the course of 1941 were described, each

compared with the roll of a die. In April, Max asked Liesel to cut his hair. In

early May, Liesel continued to read The Whistler at Ilsa's home, and

imagined herself telling Ilsa about Max. As Liesel got ready to go, Ilsa

offered the book to her, but she didn’t take it. On her way home, Liesel

found a newspaper for Max. Max and Liesel spend time reading together in

the basement. In mid-May, Liesel's soccer team beat Rudy's, and she told

Max.

At the end of May, Max began exercising again through a series of

push-ups. He daydreamed about fighting Adolf Hitler in a boxing ring. The

crowd -- millions of Germans -- cheered for Hitler and abused Max, who

arrived alone. Even the referee wanted Hitler to win. There was only one

round, and Hitler punched Max for hours. Max fell, but slowly rose before

the count, then at last aimed a series of blows at Hitler's mustache. Hitler

fell, then returned to his feet, removed his gloves, and talked to the crowd.

22

Hitler delivered a speech in which he said Max was plotting against them,

trying to enslave them. He asked them to come into the ring to "defeat this

enemy together," and they did. In the end, a girl came in with a newspaper

and told Max that the crossword was empty, then the dream was over. A

few nights later, Max told Liesel about his dream of fighting Hitler and that

he was training for it. In early June, Max, Liesel, Hans and Rosa removed

and painted over the pages of Mein Kampf.

Germany invaded the Soviet Union in late June, and Rosa lost her

last customer, the mayor and his wife Ilsa, who had to cut back while they

advised others to prepare for harder times ahead. On Liesel's last visit, Ilsa

begged her to take The Whistler, which she did at first. But Liesel felt so

angry that she returned and yelled at Ilsa, attacking her for being wealthy

and stuck up and told her to face the fact that her son was dead. Liesel

threw the book on the ground and saw Ilsa as having been beaten up by

her words. Back at home, Liesel told Rosa that she called the mayor's wife

worthless, and that is why Ilsa fired them. Rosa did not think Liesel was

capable of insulting Ilsa, and calmly accepted the news of having been

fired.

RUDY'S YOUTH

Rudy was having trouble with the Hitler Youth leader, an older boy

named Franz Deutscher. When Rudy stuck up for Tommy Mueller, who

had hearing problems and had trouble marching, the two had to perform a

series of drills in the mud. Rudy told Liesel what happened and tried to

make her kiss him, but she didn’t.

23

THE LOSERS

Rudy and Liesel returned to the group of young thieves and meet

their new leader, Viktor Chemmel, a wealthy boy who stole for enjoyment.

Liesel thought the new leader was mean compared to the last leader Arthur

Berg. After they stole, Viktor gave Rudy and Liesel just one apple. When

Rudy complained, Viktor beat him. Rudy spit on Viktor's feet, and Viktor

hoped to make Rudy pay for it at a later date.

SKETCHES

Max began drawing sketches in the newly-blank pages of Mein Kampf.

One cartoon showed Hitler singing before a saluting crowd with the caption

"Not the Fuhrer - the conductor!" Another showed a couple standing on top

of a mountain of dead bodies looking at a swastika Sun; one said, "Isn't it a

lovely day..." Curious, Liesel saw these two pages and was very frightened

by them.

THE WHISTLER AND THE SHOES

Rudy left a Hitler Youth meeting covered in manure, blaming Franz

Deutscher. Rudy and Liesel agreed to steal something as a way of giving

Rudy a victory. Liesel brought Rudy to the mayor's house with the intention

of stealing The Whistler, though Rudy thought they are trying to get food.

Liesel climbed through an open window and got the book. They raced off,

but Rudy lost her shoes and had to go back and get them. When they got

to their homes, Rudy called Liesel "book thief" for the first time.

24

THREE ACTS OF STUPIDITY BY RUDY STEINER

Rudy stole a large potato from Thomas Mamer's grocery in full view

of many people. Mamer was about to call the police when Rudy spotted

one of his teachers and begged him to explain how poor Rudy was. The

teacher did so and Rudy was let go.

At a Hitler Youth meeting, Rudy was asked by his Hitler Youth leader,

Franz Deutscher, when Hitler's birthday was. Rudy answered with Christ's

birthday and was punished. Sometime later, Rudy saw Deutscher on the

street and threw a rock at him. In front of Tommy, Liesel, and Rudy's

younger sister Kristina, Deutscher beat Rudy badly. When Rudy was on the

ground, Deutscher pulled out a knife and asked again about Hitler's

birthday. Rudy replied, "Easter Monday," and Deutscher cut Rudy's hair.

A few weeks later, Rudy and Tommy began skipping Hitler Youth

meetings. They joined the Flieger Division, a youth group for aviation, that

mostly built model airplanes.

THE FLOATING BOOK (Part II)

Rudy and Liesel saw Franz Deutscher on the street and avoided him,

but ran into Viktor Chemmel. Viktor took Liesel's book The Whistler and

threw it into the freezing Amper River. Rudy jumped in and got it.

25

Part 6

DEATH'S DIARY: 1942

Death commented on some of the devastation of World War II, such

as the Jews burned in Nazi extermination camps and the poorly-armed

Russian soldiers being killed by the hundreds of thousands on the Eastern

Front. Death compared war to a demanding boss.

THE SNOWMAN

In late 1941, Liesel was 13. On Christmas, she brought pots of snow

down to the basement for Max, and they built a snowman, lifting Max's

spirits greatly. Soon after, though, Max's health got worse, and in mid-

February 1942, he collapsed, unconscious. He was placed in Liesel's room.

THIRTEEN PRESENTS

Five days later, Max woke up very briefly. Death remarked that it

(Death) actually visited the room when Liesel was absent and prepared to

take Max's soul, but felt a struggle and withdrew. A week later, Max briefly

woke again. Hans suggested that Liesel read to Max, so Liesel started

reading him The Whistler.

While playing soccer, the ball was run over by a car, and Liesel took it

to Max as a gift. She brought Max more presents: a pinecone, a toy soldier,

newspapers, etc. At one point, Liesel saw a giant cloud and Hans

26

suggested that she give it to Max by writing down a description of it. Liesel

finished The Whistler, but Max remained weak.

FRESH AIR, AN OLD NIGHTMARE, AND WHAT TO DO WITH A JEWISH CORPSE

Liesel and Rudy decided to steal from the mayor's house again.

Liesel snuck in and took a red book called The Dream Carrier. Death hinted

that Ilsa kept her library window open so that Liesel could steal books. At

home, Liesel started reading the book to Max.

In mid-March Liesel overheard Hans and Rosa discussing what to do

with Max's corpse should he die. Liesel insisted that Max was not dead yet.

That night Liesel had a nightmare about her brother, except this time she

saw Max's face on her brother's body.

Eight days later, Rosa entered Liesel's classroom and yelled at her,

then whispered to her that Max was awake. Rosa gave her the toy soldier,

which Max said was his favorite. That afternoon, Liesel saw Max awake

with the soccer ball on his lap. Max was happy about the gifts, and Liesel

continued reading to him while he was getting healthier.

DEATH'S DIARY: COLOGNE

On May 30, 500 people died in the first major bombing raid against a

Germany city. Death said the sky was yellow, "like burning newspaper." A

group of young children saw empty fuel canisters floating down and

collected them.

27

THE VISITOR

Nazi Party members went door to door inspecting basements to find

possible air raid shelter locations. Liesel, who was out on the street playing

soccer, saw them and wondered how to go home and tell Hans without

seeming suspicious. Liesel accidentally collided with another boy, and

Rudy ran to get Hans, who carried Liesel home. Before Hans and Rosa

have a chance to figure out how to hide Max, who had since been hidden

again in the basement. The party members arrived. They inspected the

basement, find nothing, and left. Hans, Rosa, and Liesel went downstairs

and found Max hiding behind the drop sheets holding a pair of rusty

scissors. He apologized.

THE SCHMUNZELER

Rudy knocked on the door and asked to see Liesel to check up on

her. He teased her for being a thief and smelling like cigarettes, and she

shut the door on him.

DEATH'S DIARY: THE PARISIANS

Death described the desperation of those trapped inside gas

chambers. Death said that it (Death) prayed to God whenever it tried to

understand the gas chambers. God never said anything. Death described

the sadness on June 23, 1942, the first day of operation at the gas

chambers in Auschwitz.

28

Part 7

CHAMPAGNE AND ACCORDIONS

In summer 1942, Molching, a small town outside Munich, prepared

for bombing raids. Hans found extra painting work due to the need to paint

windows and blinds black. Liesel went out with him and was excited by

Hans' cleverness and talent as a painter. One afternoon, Hans accepted

some champagne instead of payment and gave Liesel a glass.

THE TRILOGY

Rudy spent the summer training for the upcoming Hitler Youth

carnival, in which he wanted to win four track competitions and show up

Franz Deutscher, the Hitler Youth leader. Rudy won the first three events,

but was disqualified from the fourth for two false starts. Later, Rudy told

Liesel that he disqualified himself on purpose and left his gold medals with

her.

Liesel stole another novel from the mayor's home; a green book titled

A Song in the Dark. She did so alone and without Rudy. A week later, Rudy

took Liesel to the mayor's home and pointed out a book that had been

placed on a closed window on purpose. Liesel stole the book, The

Complete Duden Dictionary and Thesaurus. As the two left on bikes, Liesel

turned around and saw the mayor's wife Ilsa Hermann standing in the

window waving to her. Inside the book was a letter from Ilsa to Liesel, in

29

which Ilsa wrote that she knew about the book stealing. She invited Liesel

to come in through the front door instead of breaking in. Liesel returned to

the mayor's house and tried to knock on the door, but couldn’t bring herself

to do so.

THE SOUND OF SIRENS

Hans bought a radio, which would broadcast air raids with a cuckoo

sound before the sirens start. One night there was an air raid, and Rosa,

Hans, and Liesel left for a bomb shelter down the road. Max stayed alone

in the Hubermanns' basement, which was too small to be a shelter. On the

street, everyone carried their most precious possessions -- Liesel took her

books.

The shelter was in the basement of the Fielders; 22 people were

there, including the Steiners, Frau Holtzapfel, and Pfiffikus. Everyone was

afraid. Death wondered if these people deserved any better, how many had

participated in Hitler's persecution of others, and whether the children or

those who were hiding Jews deserved to die. Death felt sorry for them, but

less so than Death pitied the Holocaust victims. Death remarked that the

basements were survivable, but the gas chambers were not.

The raid ended, and everyone returned home. Max told the

Hubermanns that during the raid he went upstairs and looked out the

window for a few seconds; the first time he had seen the outside world in

nearly two years. He told them that the stars burned his eyes.

30

THE SKY STEALER

The first raid had been a false alarm. A real raid took place on

September 19. The young children in the basement cried. Liesel began

reading The Whistler out loud, and everyone else quietly listened. After the

raid ended, they stayed there as Liesel read the final two paragraphs of the

chapter. Outside, Himmel Street was untouched but, there was a cloud of

dust in the air. Hans wondered if he should go out and help with recovery,

but Rosa told him to stay. Liesel told Max about her reading to peoplein the

shelter.

FRAU HOLTZAPFEL'S OFFER

Frau Holtzapfel, the neighbor who hated Rosa, offered her coffee

ration and to stop spitting on the Hubermanns' door in exchange for Liesel

coming to her home and reading her The Whistler twice a week. Death

explained that Holtzapfel had two sons in Russia and that she was both

"proud and afraid."

THE LONG WALK TO DACHAU

A convoy of trucks transporting Jews to the concentration camp at

Dachau stopped outside Molching. Death removed a soul from one of the

trucks. The soldiers decided to "parade" the Jews through town. Liesel and

Rudy were playing soccer on the street when they saw the procession.

Hans meet them with his paint cart and tried to talk Liesel in to leaving, but

Liesel wanted to stay.

All wearing yellow stars, the Jews were malnourished and in

31

bad condition. An older man kept falling down and then struggling to his

feet to keep up. Out of the crowd of abusive Germans, Hans offered the

man a piece of bread, and the man fell between Hans' feet crying and

thanking him. The soldiers whipped the Jew six times, then whipped Hans

four times. Death remarked that the older Jew "would die like a human," but

wondered "if that's such a good thing." Three other Jews fought over the

piece of bread.

Some of the Germans abused Hans and turned over his paint cart,

but others silently helped him to safety. Hans panicked, worried that the

Nazis would go to his house and find Max.

PEACE

That night, Max left the Hubermanns' home, leaving behind a gift to

be given to Liesel when she was "ready." It has been arranged that Max

and Hans would meet in the forest in four days; Hans only found a note

reading "You've done enough."

THE IDIOT AND THE COAT MEN

Later that night Hans anxiously waited for the Gestapo, and Liesel

prayed for Max's safety. The next morning, Hans wondered why nobody

had come and worried that Max was sent out for no reason. Hans was mad

at himself for giving the older Jew a piece of bread, but Liesel tried to tell

him that he had done nothing wrong. Three weeks later, Liesel

32

saw two men in black coats on the street and told Hans the Gestapo was

there. Hans ran out and yelled that he was the one they wanted. They told

him that he was "a little old for our purposes" and instead went to the

Steiners' home looking for Rudy.

33

Part 8

DOMINOES AND DARKNESS

At the Steiner’s house, Rudy and the younger children were setting

up dominoes while their parents argued with the two Nazi agents in the

kitchen about inducting Rudy into a special military school. Rudy listened to

the conversation as the children set off the dominoes by candlelight. Rudy

understood that by winning three gold medals at the Hitler Youth carnival,

he proved himself not only to his former tormentor Franz Deutscher, but to

everyone. Rudy's parents refused to let him go.

THE THOUGHT OF RUDY NAKED

Earlier, a nurse and a doctor had Rudy and two other boys remove

their clothes for a physical examination at school. The nurse explained to a

teacher in the room that they were creating a "new class of physically and

mentally advanced Germans." The doctor said he would take two of them.

A day after the Nazis visited the Steiner household, Rudy told Liesel

about these two events. For days afterward, Liesel had visions of Rudy in

the nude.

PUNISHMENT

After Max left, Hans had lost his optimism. He no longer played the

accordion and waited for his punishment for helping the elderly Jew on the

street. In early November, Hans' application to join the Nazi Party was

34

approved, several years after he turned in the application. Two days later,

Hans was drafted into the German army, which needed new recruits badly

after severe losses against the Soviet Union. Rudy's father, Alex Steiner,

was also drafted.

THE PROMISE KEEPER'S WIFE

The night before Hans was to leave for training, Hans and Alex got

drunk at the Knoller against the wishes of their wives. The next morning,

Rosa woke Hans up with a bucket of cold water. Liesel unsuccessfully

begged Hans not to leave, and Hans asked her to look after his accordion

and to continue reading if there was another raid. Rudy and Liesel were

very sad by their losses. Rudy tried to get Liesel to run away with him to

find and kill Hitler. Liesel thought about on all the people she had lost: her

mother, her brother, Max, and now Hans. On their way home, they walked

past Alex Steiner's tailor shop, which was closed.

That night, Liesel woke up and found Rosa in the living room sitting

on the edge of her bed with Hans' accordion.

THE COLLECTOR

Alex was sent to an army hospital in Vienna, where his job was to

sew old clothes. Hans was sent to Essen, where he was given a job very

few people wanted with the Air Raid Special Uni. His unit must stay above

ground during air raids to put out fires, prop up buildings, and save people.

35

Everyone in the unit had done something wrong to get this assignment.

Hans told them about his having given bread to a Jew. The sergeant

laughed and told him he was lucky to be alive.

The job was smoky and very, very dangerous. Every once in a while,

people would roam through the haze and rubble seeking a missing loved

one. In one shift, a bleeding old man asked Hans for help. Hans carried him

to safety, then found the man was dead. Later, Hans tripped over the

corpse of a young boy while rushing from a building. A woman walked

down the street asking if anyone had seen her son Rudolf, and the

sergeant was not able to bring himself to tell her about the dead boy. The

name made Hans think about Rudy Steiner.

THE BREAD EATERS

Back in Molching, Liesel spent the rest of 1942 thinking about three

men, Hans, Max, and Alex. She continued reading The Whistler to Frau

Holtzapfel. In the fall, another parade of Jews took place, and Liesel rushed

to see if Max was among them. In the middle of December, a third, smaller

collection of Jews was marched down the street. Rudy showed Liesel a

bag containing six pieces of bread. They placed the bread on the street in

advance of the Jews and hid. Liesel heard Rudy's stomach growl. When

the procession arrived, Jews snatched up the bread. A soldier noticed

Liesel and Rudy, and the two ran. Liesel was kicked in the backside by a

soldier, but the two received no other punishment. Max was not among this

group either.

36

THE HIDDEN SKETCHBOOK

Another air raid took place shortly before Christmas, and Liesel again

read to the shelter.

After the raid, Rosa gave Liesel the present Max made for her; a

book called The Word Shaker. The book contained pages full of sketches

and stories. On page 117 was a lightly-illustrated story, a story about "The

Word Shaker":

A man, possibly Hitler, decided he would rule the world. One day he

saw a mother yelling at her child until he cried. Then, minutes later, spoke

very softly to him until he smiled. The Fuhrer decided he would rule the

world with words. He planted the seeds of words and symbols across his

country and cultivated them. He invited people with his freshly-picked

words and placed them on a conveyor belt, through which they are

hypnotized with words and given symbols. The demand for his words

became so great that people are hired to cultivate the large forests of

words. Some, called "word shakers," were employed to climb the trees and

throw the words to people below.

A small, skinny girl was the "best word shaker of her region because

she knew how powerless a person could be" without words. She could

climb higher than anyone else. The girl made friends with a man who was

hated by her country. When he was sick, she shed a tear on his face. The

tear, made of friendship, became a seed, which the girl planted and

37

cultivated. The tree steadily grew to the tallest in the forest. The Fuhrer,

very mad, ordered the tree cut down and took an axe to it. Even though she

wasn’t supposed to, the girl climbed the tree and the Fuhrer's ax was not

able to make a dent in the tree trunk. For months, the girl stayed in the tree,

and the Fuhrer's soldiers were not able to destroy it as long as she was

there.

A new axman arrived, but instead of an ax, he took a hammer and

placed nails up the tree. Using the nails as footholds, he climbed up to the

girl, miles high above the clouds. The man turned out to be the girl's friend

from earlier. They climbed down together, and the very large tree fell,

crushing part of the forest and creating a new path through it. They walked

down the horizontal trunk. Behind them, most of the onlookers had returned

to the rest of the forest, but the two friends could hear "voices and words

behind them, on the word shaker's tree."

THE ANARCHIST'S SUIT COLLECTION

On Christmas Eve, Liesel and Rudy went to his father's store, where

she got him a "present": a navy blue suit.

38

Part 9

THE NEXT TEMPTATION

With Rudy, Liesel took a plate of cookies and another book, The Last

Human Stranger, from the mayor's house. She met up with Ilsa and

realized that the library was hers. Ilsa explained that the books are mostly

hers and some belonged to her son. Liesel was touched by the idea that

the woman owned a roomful of books. Liesel and Rudy ate half the cookies

on the way home and shared the rest with Tommy Muller.

THE CARDPLAYER

Meanwhile, near Essen, Hans and the rest of his brigade were

playing cards for cigarettes. A young man named Reinhold Zucker, who

bragged when he won, accused Hans of cheating. Whenever Hans won a

hand, he gave his fellow soldiers a cigarette back. Reinhold refused this.

He hated Hans.

THE SNOWS OF STALINGRAD

In January 1943, Liesel went to Frau Holtzapfel's to read and ran

across an old-looking man with a bloody, bandaged hand. He told Liesel to

return later. Three hours later, he visited Liesel's home. He was one of

Holtzapfel's sons, Michael, and he had just returned from the Battle of

Stalingrad. Liesel lit a cigarette for him. Michael told Rosa that his brother

died in a makeshift hospital. He also told her that he heard Hans Junior

was alive there.

39

Death explained how Michael's brother Robert died: on a freezing

cold January day in Russia. Robert's legs were blown off. He was brought

to the temporary hospital and died three days later, his brother at his side.

At Frau Holtzapfel's home, Liesel read to Michael and his crying mother.

THE AGELESS BROTHER

Liesel returned the empty plate to Ilsa Hermann's front door and

imagined that her dead brother would be six years old forever. Rosa still sat

with Hans' accordion and prayed for the safe return of her husband and

son.

THE ACCIDENT

On the truck carrying Hans' unit, Reinhold Zucker demanded to

switch seats with Hans; not willing to argue, Hans did so. A tire blew out

and the driver lost control of the truck. Zucker was the only one who died in

the accident, and Hans said that it should have been him. Instead, Hans'

leg was injured, and his Sergeant said he would recommend Hans be given

rest. He should then be sent to Munich for office work, a much safer

assignment. He said to Hans, "You're lucky you're a good man, and

generous with the cigarettes."

THE BITTER TASTE OF QUESTIONS

In February, Liesel and Rosa received a letter from Hans telling them

that he was coming home. Barbara Steiner was very happy about the

news, and Rudy seemed happy, but wondered why Hans and not his father

would be returning.

40

ONE TOOLBOX, ONE BLEEDER, ONE BEAR

Rudy, who had been steadily growing angrier since his father's

recruitment, took a metal toolbox up the street. The box contained burglary

tools and a teddy bear. Liesel ran out to meet him. Rudy told her that she

was not a real thief since Ilsa practically let her in. He said that stealing was

"what the army does. Taking your father, and mine." Rudy planned on

breaking into one of the wealthier residents' homes. He told Liesel that the

teddy bear was to calm down a kid should he run across one. Rudy was

not able to bring himself to steal. Later, he used the toolbox to carry items

for air raids.

In March, there was another air raid. Frau Holtzapfel refused to leave

her home, and Michael and Rosa were not able to get her out. Liesel told

her that if she didn’t come to the shelter, Liesel would stop coming to read

to her and she would have lost her only friend. Frau Holtzapfel still refused,

so the others left her for the Fiedlers' basement. Michael didn’t feel good

about leaving his mother, but Frau Holtzapfel arrived. The raid was long,

and Liesel read 54 pages to the group.

After the raid, Rudy's younger sister noticed a small fire and smoke

coming from near the river. Rudy, with his toolbox, headed there through

the forest, and Liesel followed. There was a downed plane. Rudy took the

teddy bear from his toolbox and placed it on the pilot. The pilot thanked him

in English and died. Death arrived to carry the man's soul away and

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recognized Liesel. Death was convinced that Liesel knew death was there.

Death remarked that it (Death) had been Hitler's most loyal servant.

HOMECOMING

After he healed (got healthier), Hans was given a week home before

being sent to Munich to do paperwork. He told Liesel and Rosa about all

that had happened to him, including the death of Reinhold Zucker. All that

night, he sat by Liesel's bed. She woke several times to see if he was still

there.

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Part 10

THE END OF THE WORLD (Part I)

Death described the bombing of Himmel Street that took place at the

end of this part. Everyone died sleeping except for Liesel, who was awake

in the Hubermann's basement at the time of the raid. A rescue crew found

her holding a book and asked why she was in the basement. The air raid

sirens failed to go off in time.

THE NINETY-EIGHTH DAY

After a week at home, Hans began his simple office assignment in

Munich. Three months later in Molching, Jews were marched through town

on their way to perform forced clean-up work. Liesel again watched to see

if Max was among them. Death explained that Max soon would be. Michael

Holtzapfel committed suicide due to his guilt over surviving where his

brother died.

THE WAR MAKER

Michael Holtzapfel's funeral took place in July. The Allies bombed

Hamburg, killing 45,000. Death remarked that the Germans "were starting

to pay in earnest," and that even though Germany's military had setbacks,

Hitler had not been slackening off "in terms of war-making" and the

extermination of the Jews.

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WAY OF THE WORDS

Another batch of Jews were marched through town on their way to

Dachau. Max was among them, and Liesel recognized him by the way he

scanned the crowd of Germans looking for her. Liesel ran into the

procession and hung onto Max. He told her that he was captured a few

months earlier, halfway to Stuttgart. Max warned Liesel to let go of him, but

she continued to walk with him. A soldier drug her away and threw her off.

Liesel got up and returned to Max. She talked about "The Word Shaker"

and "The Standover Man." He stopped walking, as did the rest of the Jews.

They hugged, and Max was whipped while Liesel was dragged away again.

Liesel was whipped as well, and Rudy in the crowd called out to her as Max

was forced off. Rudy and Tommy Muller pulled Liesel away. Liesel tried to

go after the disappearing procession, but Rudy held her back, and she

fought him.

CONFESSIONS

Liesel waited for Hans at the train station. Hans and Rosa learned

about what happened. Hans tried to play the accordion that evening but

couldn’t. Liesel stayed in bed for three days. On the fourth day, she walked

with Rudy down the road toward Dachau. She explained everything about

Max to him. She showed Rudy the drawing of him Max made. Rudy was

surprised she told Max about him. Secretly, Liesel wanted Rudy to kiss her

and realized that she loved him. Rudy would die in one month.

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ILSA HERMANN'S LITTLE BLACK BOOK

Liesel headed to Ilsa Hermann's home, thinking a visit might cheer

her up. She entered through a window and began reading a book on the

floor of Ilsa's library. Liesel did not know or care whether Ilsa was home.

She thought about all the people she had seen die and pictured Hitler's

words at the center of it. She did not want to hope for Max and Alex Steiner

anymore, "because the world does not deserve them." She ripped up the

book she was reading and said out loud, "What good are the words?"

"Without words, the Fuhrer was nothing." She called out Ilsa's name, but

got no response. Liesel wrote a letter to Ilsa, in which she apologized for

destroying a book and said she would never return to punish herself.

Three days later, Ilsa arrived at Liesel's home. Ilsa told her that,

based on the letter, she could write well and gave her a blank book of lined

paper. She asked Liesel not to punish herself, as Ilsa did over the death of

her son. Liesel invited Ilsa in for coffee and bread. That night, Liesel went

down to the basement and began writing a story titled The Book Thief.

THE RIB-CAGE PLANES

Liesel wrote eleven pages of the story of her life, starting with her

brother's death. Every night, Liesel went down to the basement to write.

Ten nights later, Liesel was asleep in the basement and didn’t hear the air

raid siren. Hans woke her to go to the shelter. On October 2, Liesel had

finished the story.

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THE END OF THE WORLD (Part II)

Death described the bombing of Himmel Street. The sirens were too

late. The first bomb hit Tommy Muller's apartment block; he and his family

were asleep. Frau Holtzapfel was sitting awake in her kitchen. Frau Diller

was asleep. Her shop was destroyed, and her framed photo of Hitler was

smashed. The Steiners were all asleep, and Rudy was in a bed with one of

his sisters. Death recognized him as the boy who gave the pilot a teddy

bear. Death observed Rudy's soul and saw him pretending to be Jesse

Owens, retrieving a book from the icy river, and imagined a kiss from

Liesel. He made Death cry. At last, Death took Hans and Rosa. Hans' soul

sat up and met Death. Hans' soul whispered Liesel's name, knowing that

she was in the basement.

Death travelled to other streets, but returned to Himmel Street for a

single man. Death noticed the recovery crew laughing and watched. The

crew pulled Liesel out. She panicked and ran down her destroyed street.

The crew told her that her town has been bombed, and she told them that

they must get Hans, Rosa, and Max. Still holding her book, Liesel collapsed

to the ground, and a man sat her up. She saw a worker carrying Hans'

broken accordion case and offered to take it. Liesel dropped the accordion

when she saw the corpses laid out on the street. She saws Frau Holtzapfel

first, then Rudy. She begged Rudy to wake up, then kissed him on the lips.

Liesel then saw Rosa and Hans. Crying, she told Rosa's body about

the day she arrived on Himmel Street, how Rosa informed her about Max

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waking up, and that she knew Rosa would sit with Hans' accordion. Liesel

asked a worker for the accordion, and she placed it by Hans' body. She

envisioned Hans rise and play the accordion beautifully, a cigarette

hanging from his lips. She said goodbye to him.

The Book Thief (the story Liesel wrote) was thrown onto a garbage

truck along with other trash. Death climbed onto the truck and took it.

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Epilogue

DEATH AND LIESEL

Death was now writing in the present, "many years" after these

events. Liesel died yesterday in Sydney, Australia. She lived to a "very old

age." Like Hans', her soul sat up to meet Death. In her final visions, she

saw "her three children, her grandchildren, her husband," and others in her

life, including Hans and Rosa, her brother, and Rudy.

WOOD IN THE AFTERNOON

After Himmel Street was cleared, Ilsa Hermann and the mayor took

Liesel into their home. Liesel, still covered in dust from the bombing, did not

bathe for the four days leading to the day of the funerals. Two ceremonies

were held for the Steiners; one immediately after burial, and one after the

return of Alex Steiner. Alex regretted not letting Rudy go to the Army

school, and wished that it had been himself, and not his son, who died.

Liesel told him about kissing Rudy's corpse.

MAX

After the war was over, Alex started his tailor work again. Liesel often

went with him. In October 1945, Max returned.

THE HANDOVER MAN

After Liesel died, Death walked down the street with her and showed

her The Book Thief, which Death had kept all those years. Death said that

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it read Liesel's book many times. Liesel asked if Death could understand it,

but Death did not answer. Death wanted to ask her how the human race

could be "so ugly and so glorious," but did not. Instead, Death told her the

"only truth" it "truly knows" (knew)- "I am haunted by humans."

https://www.gradesaver.com/the-book-thief/study-guide/summary-prologue

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