"One small fact: You are going to die." These words opens Mark Zusack's book published titled "The Book Thief", and these words made me read it in one breath.
The Book Thief has become an international bestseller thanks to its fascinating story told by rather an extraordinary narrator... death. It seems that the author chose to use that trick in order to create a totally different perspective. For the narrator does not belong to humankind, it notices all the flaws and assets which we all demonstrate. The main character, Liesel happens to live in the shady times of WW II. She is a bright nine -year-old girl with blonde hair and a great passion for books. Since the time in Germany gets hard, books become luxury goods, which pushes Liesel to becoming The Book Thief. Her hobby is not shared by her foster mother - Rosa, who is a down-to-eath German housekeeper. However, Liesel gets mutual understanding from a foster father and manages to make a few extraordinary friends. However, all the precious moments of Lisa's early life are interrupted by various tragic accidents.
Finally, it is not possible to overlook the beauty of the language used by Zusack. Trust me, it is going to make you fall in love with this story without regrets.
All in all, The Book Thief is one of the most remarkable stories I have read in my entire life. It is a rare example of a story covering the life of civilians in Germany during the WWII. The Book Thief has it all: a great plot, unforgetable narrator and it is simply well-written. I highly recommend it to everyone who loves good literature.
Glossary - słownictwo
extraordonary - nadzwyczajny
humankind - rodzaj ludzki, ludzkość
to notice - dostrzec
flaws - wady
assests - zalety
shady times - ponure czasy
WWII - Druga Wojna Światowa
luxury goods - dobra luksusowe
precious - cudowne, wyjątkowe
interrupted by ... - przerwane przez ...
a foster mother - matka zastępcza
a foster father - ojciec zastępczy
mutual understanding - obustronne zrozumienie
to ovelook - przegapić, pominąć
rare - rzadki
remarkable - znaczący, wybitny