Storia di una ladra di libri

Narrated by Death, this novel follows Liesel Meminger, a girl sent in 1939 to live with foster parents, Hans and Rosa Hubermann, on Himmel Street in Molching, Germany. She cannot read when she arrives, but learns with Hans's help, and begins stealing books, from a Nazi book burning to the mayor's library. When the Hubermanns hide a Jewish man, Max Vandenburg, in their basement, stories become a way to survive.

For readers who want a wartime story told from an unusual angle. It leaves you with a memorable portrait of ordinary Germans under the Nazis and of what words can do.

Inward-looking, contemplative and thought-provoking; a moderate read.

Best for readers like The Mindful Reader. Which reader are you?