Narrated by Death, The Book Thief is the story of Liesel Meminger, a nine-year-old German girl who given up by her mother to live with Hans and Rosa Hubermann in the small town of Molching in 1939, shortly before World War II. On their way to Molching, Liesel's younger brother Werner dies, and she is traumatized, experiencing nightmares about him for months. Hans is a gentle man who brings her comfort and helps her learn to read, starting with a book Liesel took from the cemetery where her brother was buried. Liesel befriends a neighborhood boy, Rudy Steiner, who falls in love with her. At a book burning, Liesel realizes that her father was persecuted for being a Communist, and that her mother was likely killed by the Nazis for the same…

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• The Book Thief Summary
• About The Book Thief
• Character List
• Glossary of Terms
• Major Themes
• Quotes and Analysis
• Summary and Analysis of Prologue
• Summary and Analysis of Part One
• Summary and Analysis of Part Two
• Summary and Analysis of Part Three
• Summary and Analysis of Part Four
• Summary and Analysis of Part Five
• Summary and Analysis of Part Six
• Summary and Analysis of Part Seven
• Summary and Analysis of Part Eight
• Summary and Analysis of Part Nine
• Summary and Analysis of Part Ten and Epilogue
• Notes on the Holocaust and Dachau
• Related Links on The Book Thief
• Suggested Essay Questions
• Test Yourself! - Quiz 1
• Test Yourself! - Quiz 2
• Test Yourself! - Quiz 3
• Test Yourself! - Quiz 4
• Test Yourself! - Quiz 5
• Author of ClassicNote and Sources

• The Book Thief: Major Themes
• The Book Thief: Essays
• The Book Thief: Lesson Plan
• The Book Thief: Questions
• The Book Thief: Purchase the Novel and Related Material
• Markus Zusak: Biography