The Book Thief Guilt Theme

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The Book Thief is written by Markus Zusak. It's about a young girl named Liesel Meminger who is transferred to a foster family during World War II. During this time Liesel is with her new foster parents, she learns to read (mostly with books she stole from Nazi Book Burnings and the mayor's wife's library). Due to Liesel's parents sending her to a foster family, abandonment is a major theme throughout the book. Likewise, death and guilt are also significant themes throughout the novel.
A prominent theme in the novel is abandonment. Liesel is abandoned towards the start of the book. At first, Liesel did not know why her mother made her live with a foster family. For a prolonged period of time, she feels alone, then she gets to know her foster father and she still felt abandoned, but she did not feel as alone. In the chapter "100 Percent Pure German Sweat", Liesel realizes why her mother abandoned her. Liesel's parents were Communists which would have put Liesel in danger if they didn't give Liesel to a foster family.
Another considerable theme in The Book Thief is guilt. Hans Hubermann feels …show more content…
Throughout the entire story, the narration is told by Death. Death, in vivid detail, describes all different types of people who he "carries" to the afterlife. Death is very drawn to Liesel when he very first sees her, he watches her every time she has a close call with him. Despite Death's facination, Liesel lives a long life. The people Liesel loved, however, weren't so lucky. Death takes Liesel's brother first. Then, at the end of the novel, a bomb on Himmel street takes out the entire neighborhood except for her. Liesel's last surviving friend was Max.
The themes of death, guilt, and abandonment were all strong themes in The Book Thief. All of these themes appear in most books based on the Holocaust. Without the presence in these themes in The Book Thief, there wouldn't be a conflict therefore, there wouldn't be a
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