The Book Thief

I think from now on if anyone ever asks me what kind of books I like to read, I will answer, "Books like The Book Thief." It was perfect. My friend who lent it to me said, "You have to read about 50 pages in before it gets really good." Dear friend, I totally disagree, I was hooked at word one. The narrator - Brilliant. The imagery - amazing! I love words, I love to write with them, play with them, dream about them and this book did more with words than I could ever imagine. Plus, I love historical fiction and have always been a sucker for books set in Nazi Germany. For some strange reason, when I am reading, I love to have my heart ripped out and trampled on and this book did that. Interestingly enough, I did not cry like a baby, just a few well placed tears is all. It probably has a lot to do with the narrator's nasty habit of telling you the end of the story before it actually gets there. But, as one friend observed, that leaves you open to truly experience what Liesel is going through rather than wondering what is going to happen next. Now that I am done reading, I really miss Liesel and Rudy, Hans and Rosa and the rest of the family of Himmel Street.