Friday 28 February 2014

The book Thief by Markus Zusak

A tale narrated by death himself about a young girl caught up in the turmoil of Hitler's Germany. This is a heart warming fable of human kindness and human spirit in the face of unimaginable evil. An interesting aspect of this tale is that neither the protagonist Liesel nor her step parents are Jewish so this story tells a different side of the Nazi terror than we normally read about. While this is a strength of the novel it is also an aspect I feel a bit uncomfortable about.  This s a made up story with a contrived ending. There were so many real human tragedies in that period it seems almost inappropriate to be inventing new ones for the sake of a novel. Nevertheless it is an excellent read that will tug on your heartstrings. My wife and I are determined to see the film when it comes to our local cinemas next week.