Orphans & Foster Homes, Holocaust, Contemporary, Family 

2018 Great American Read. 

Trying to make sense of the horrors of World War II, Death relates the story of Liesel--a young German girl whose book-stealing and story-telling talents help sustain her family and the Jewish man they are hiding, as well as their neighbors. 

t's just a small story really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery. Set during World War II in Germany, Markus Zusak's groundbreaking new novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can't resist -- books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau. - Markus Zusak. 

Genre/Form: Young adult fiction
Historical fiction
War fiction
Fiction
History
Juvenile works
Young adult works
Juvenile fiction
Material Type: Fiction, Secondary (senior high) school, Internet resource
Document Type: Book, Internet Resource
All Authors / Contributors: Markus Zusak
ISBN: 0375831002 9780375831003 0375931007 9780375931000 9780375842207 0375842209 9781480624894 1480624896 9780606346566 0606346562 9780385754729 0385754728 9780786290215 0786290218 9780756984403 0756984408 9781101934180 1101934182
OCLC Number: 59098938
Awards: Michael L. Printz Honor for Excellence in Young Adult Literature, 2007
Notable Book for a Global Society award winner, 2007
Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People, 2007
Sydney Taylor Book Award, 2007.
Target Audience: 730
Description: 552 pages : illustrations ; 22 cm
Contents: Prologue : A mountain range of rubble. Death and chocolate --
Beside the railway line --
The eclipse --
The flag --
Part one : The Grave Digger's Handbook. Arrival on Himmel Street --
Growing up a Saumensch --
The woman with the iron fist --
The kiss (A childhood decision maker) --
The Jesse Owens incident --
The other side of sandpaper --
The smell of friendship --
The heavyweight champion of the school-yard --
Part two : The shoulder shrug. A girl made of darkness --
The joy of cigarettes --
The town walker --
Dead letters --
Hitler's birthday, 1940 --
100 percent pure German sweat --
The gates of thievery --
Book of fire --
Part three : Mein Kampf. The way home --
The mayor's library --
Enter the struggler --
The attributes of summer --
The Aryan shopkeeper --
The struggler, continued --
Tricksters --
The struggler, concluded --
Part four : The standover man. The accordionist (The secret life of Hans Hubermann) --
A good girl --
A short history of the Jewish fist fighter --
The wrath of Rosa --
Liesel's lecture --
The sleeper --
The swapping of nightmares --
Pages from the basement --
Part five : The whistler. The floating book (Part 1) --
The gamblers (a seven-sided die) --
Rudy's youth --
The losers --
Sketches --
The whistler and the shoes --
Three acts of stupidity by Rudy Steiner --
The floating book (Part 2) --
Part six : The dream carrier. Death's diary : 1942 --
The snowman --
Thirteen presents --
Fresh air, an old nightmare, and what to do with a Jewish corpse --
Death's diary : Cologne --
The visitor --
The Schmunzeler --
Death's diary : the Parisians --
Part seven : The complete Duden dictionary and thesaurus. Champagne and accordions --
The trilogy --
The sound of sirens --
The sky stealer --
Frau Holtzapfel's offer --
The long walk to Dachau --
Peace --
The idiot and the coat men --
Part eight : The word shaker. Dominoes and darkness --
The thought of Rudy naked --
Punishment --
The promise keeper's wife --
The collector --
The bread eaters --
The hidden sketchbook --
The anarchist's suit collection --
Part nine : The last human stranger. The next temptation --
The cardplayer --
The snows of Stalingrad --
The ageless brother --
The accident --
The bitter taste of questions --
One toolbox, one bleeder, one bear --
Homecoming --
Part ten : The book thief. The end of the world (Part 1) --
The ninety-eighth day --
The war maker --
Way of the words --
Confessions --
Ilsa Hermann's little black book --
The rib-cage planes --
The end of the world (Part 2) --
Epilogue : The last color. Death and Liesel --
Wood in the afternoon --
Max --
The handover man.
Series Title: 2018 Great American Read.
Responsibility: Markus Zusak.