What readers think of The Book Thief, plus links to write your own review.

What a very different approach to a well covered subject. From the moment you figure out who the narrator is, this book despite being over 500 pages long, holds your attention. The characters are rich and complex and book clubs would enjoy delving into all their personalities and conflicts. It centers around the rise of Hitler in a small part of Germany and how this affects the lives of the people who live there. Markus Zusak has a very different style of writing that I enjoyed and would recommend to everyone. You will smile and cry and carry it with you when you are done.

Exceptional, captivating, heartwarming... so many words to describe how excellent I found The Book Thief. One need Liesel's "words" to describe the many emotions provoked by this wonderful story. The characterizations are outstanding. Each character has their own special quality to regard. I highly recommend The Book Thief. And have already done so!

This is one of the best books I have ever read. It is definitely not just for young people and I shall remember the characters for a long time.

The magic relationships that we see grow & deepen between Liesel & her foster parents, dear Rudy, and Max & Ilsa, the Mayor's wife, point to the importance of words & their power. At the beginning we find Liesel begging her foster father to teach her the words so that she can read. Which he lovingly does. At the close of The Book Thief, we learn we are reading her book. It is her story and we are privileged to read it.

The Book Thief challenges our humanity & inhumanity. This is a must read for book clubs!

I have read the book twice and enjoyed it even more the second time. I was originally a little concerned as to how I would feel about Death as the narrator but found him to be a compassionate,likable character. Instead of spoiling the story, his telling of events in advance seemed to soften the impact, resulting in a thoughtful, powerful and sweet story rather than a thriller. I continue to recommend this book to everyone I know.

Although it took me a while to get into the rhythm of the book I liked the way it was structured and found myself drawn into the many relationships between the people who lived on and visited Himmel Street. Once you get past the fact that Death is the narrator and realize it is a book of faith not abandonment, the book comes alive. I found myself liking Mama and Papa although I expected them to be the evil foster parents depicted much of the time in literature. I half expected to find out that there was a pre-war connection between Liesel and Max or that Liesel was secretly Jewish. Having been to Munich and Dachau I was very aware of how close the camp was to its actual neighbors thus I could envision Liesel and Rudy watching the Jews being marched to the camp. I would not consider this Young Adult literature and am surprised it has been classified as such. When Max began his first book hidden in the basement I likened it to the diaries written on scraps of paper inside the camps which have become such an integral part of Holocaust history. This is a book with a unique premise that keeps the reader's attention about a time in history we can never forget.

What a wonderful read! Once I got started I could not put it down. "Death" as the narrator was an interesting concept and it worked very well. There were many beautiful and powerful passages in the book. I started to underline them , but then realized I'd be underling a lot of the book! Liesel and the other characters stayed with me long after I finished the book. I would recommend this book for young and old alike.

The Book Thief tiptoes into your life as you read the first few chapters of the book and gently steals your attention (it is difficult to put down). The language the author uses paints a haunting picture of life in Germany during Hitler's reign and makes the characters human and endearing. It reminds me that there are two sides to every war and innocent people are drastically effected by it. The story is moving and told from the perspective of the angel of death giving human emotions and feelings to tough subjects. While the book was written for teens it is a book adults will find enjoyable. A tender story that will grab any reader, loaded with elements for literary analysis and discussion.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and didn't want it to end. Mr Zusak's style of prose was charming and immensely readable. His descriptions helped the reader to feel the scene and not just read about it. His characters became people. I would definitely read anything else he wrote and have recommended this book to many friends already. I am a 50ish mother and my 23 year old son enjoyed it as much as I did.