Surprised or Puzzled? – Is there something that surprises you that does not appear to fit in the text? Explain why you feel this way. Discuss why something doesn’t make sense to you or why your views might be different from the author’s intended purpose.

At the end of The Book Thief, a bomb explodes on Himmel street and there is only one survivor. Of course, that is Liesel. All of her friends and family die including Hans Hubermann, Rosa Hubermann and Rudy. This whole part surprises me because there is normally a happy ending in these types of books about war and people surviving. However, this was expected a little bit because in real life there might not be a happy ending to a scary or sad war. Innocent people can die or get injured. I feel that this was a great way to end the story because it shows how wars end in real life and that they aren’t just made to make everyone happy and thankful in the end. During the epilogue, Max comes back from the Jewish camp and finds Liesel, which makes up for the ending with all of the death.

Something else that doesn’t fit the text to me is when Michael Holtzapfel killed himself. He lost his brother and knew how he felt, yet he still made his mother deal with that loss, even though he saw how broken she was last time. He died for the wrong reason,” Michael Holtzapfel knew what he was doing. He killed himself for wanting to live.”(Zusak 503) That means that he felt bad that he wanted to live so he died, which doesn’t really make sense. However, since later in the book everyone dies from the bomb, it is most likely that he would have died then. I understand why the author did this, but I also don’t. He was trying to make the book realistic, but sad and it had that effect. However, in the end it was a good book, so I feel he made the right choice.

Setting and Mood – Describe a scene in which the setting and mood are particularly effective. What language made them effective? Be specific.

Liesel and her family were in a neighbors basement waiting to get hit by bombs. Unfortunately, they had to leave Max behind because they couldn’t risk having him around with so many people who resent Jews. Everyone was freaking out waiting to get killed because of Hitler. Children were crying and even though they had been in that basement before, nobody was calmer or quieter. “Although they were right next to each other, Liesel was forced to call out, “Mama?” Again, “Mama, you squashing my hand!”(Zusak 380). Everyone was scared that they wouldn’t survive, even adults. “Liesel opened one of her books and began to read. The book on top of the pile was The Whistler and she spoke it out loud to help her concentrate. “(Zusak 381) Liesel knew exactly what to do even though nobody else was doing it. “When she turned to page two, it was Rudy who noticed. He paid direct attention to what Liesel was reading, and he tapped his brothers and sisters, telling them to do the same. Hans Hubermann came closer and called out, and soon, a quietness started bleeding through the crowded basement. By page three, everyone was silent but Liesel.”(Zusak 381)

That small action made everyone calm down and relax. The book she was reading was calming and helped them realize that they shouldn’t be freaking out over something that couldn’t have been avoided. She got the mood from chaotic to quiet. When in a time of crisis, it is important for one person to stay strong and help others do the same. That person was one of the least likely people in the room to be able to calm people down, which changes people mood to hopeful and optimistic. Liesel’s voice made them calm down, understand the situation and know that they couldn’t do anything about it so embrace the moment and relax.

“‘ Holy Christ,” Liesel gasped. “You scared me, Max.” He returned to his sleep, and behind her, the girl dragged the same thought up the steps. You scared me, Max.” (Zusak 281)

Max wanted to one day share his book with Liesel after the whole war is over, however, he doesn’t realize that she just saw his book. She said this after she just looked at his book and put it back in its correct position. There are many scary images that she never thought that she would find in his book.

Many people keep diaries or notebooks of some kind to help express what they are really feeling or if they want to share something but has no one to share it with. Max and Liesel lead very different lives, and so Liesel never thought about how Max would cope with his anger and how he felt. This quote shows that there was a whole other side of Max that she never knew about and she was just finding out about it. She thought that he was fine, not happy, but okay with the situation and never thought about how this situation affects him. This quote is significant because Liesel would from then on think of Max differently because of his book.

In Max’s book, there is a page that has the words, “All my life, I’ve been scared of men standing over me.”(Zusak 224). First, it was his father, then it was Hitler. Liesel is protected by people and he has no one to protect him. This might lead to something else that will happen to him or Liesel because he might be someone that stands up for something that they believe in. Liesel might also be someone who stands up for themself or Max because she saw what he was thinking and feeling.

What Liesel said makes me think about how we don’t really know what people are feeling and we can only assume. That is why I thought that this quote was so important and stood out. It is important in the book because Liesel and Max have different perspectives on things so it is important that they know what each other are going through. That is why this quote stood out.