The Book Thief

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The Book Thief by Mind Map: The Book Thief

1. Characters

1.1. Death

1.1.1. narrator

1.1.2. notices colors

1.1.2.1. colors distract him from the "leftover humans, the survivors"

1.1.3. personality

1.1.3.1. cheerful, amiable, agreeable, affable, not nice, fair,

1.1.4. tells the story of Leisel

1.1.5. takes Leisels biological mom and brother when they die

1.2. Leisel Meminger

1.2.1. steals books- the book thief

1.2.2. reads with her father

1.2.3. teaches Max to read

1.2.4. writes her story in the basement

1.2.5. seen by Death 3 times

1.2.5.1. "perpetual survivor"

1.3. Rosa Hubermann

1.3.1. Adoptive mother to Leisel

1.3.2. Dies from the bombing raid

1.4. Hans Hubermann

1.4.1. Adoptive father to Leisel

1.4.2. plays the Accordion

1.4.3. keeps promise to old friend that saved his life and hides a Jew in his home

1.4.4. gives bread to a Jew in public...not a good idea

1.4.5. enlists in the German army

1.4.6. dies in the end

1.5. Max Vandenberg

1.5.1. Jewish

1.5.2. lives with the Hubermann's in secret

1.5.2.1. stays in Leisel's room, until it isn't safe. Then lives in the freezing cold basement.

1.5.3. is seen by Leisel when the Jews come through the street

1.5.4. runs away to keep the Hubermann's safe

1.5.5. survives the war

1.6. Ilsa Hermann

1.6.1. Mayors wife

1.6.2. sees Leisel steal a book from the book burning

1.6.3. allows Leisel to read in her library

1.7. Rudy Steiner

1.7.1. Loves Leisel

1.7.1.1. New node

1.7.2. Dies from the bombing raid

1.7.3. steals books and food with Leisel

1.7.3.1. tries to get Leisel to stop out of fear, but realizes he needs to go with her to protect her.

1.7.4. wants to always kiss Leisel, but she won't let him

2. Quotes & Insights

2.1. "I have hated the words and I have loved them, and I hope I have made them right." Last line in the book. Shows the positive and negative experiences Leisel has had. Even though she was able to use words to cope, it didn't completely take away the hurt of losing the friends and family she loved.

2.2. "There were the erased pages of Mein Kampf, gagging, suffocating under the paint as they turned." Death shows how words are not permanent. Mein Kampf could not control everyone because people have agency and could rebel, just as Leisel, Max, and others did.

2.3. "I am haunted by humans." This is ironic because you would think people would be haunted by death. However, with the narrator being death it shows the side of death we don't think of. The side of death that sees the separations of families and friends and has to see the grieving people.

2.4. "Soon, there was nothing but scraps of words littered between her legs and all around her. The words. Why did they have to exist? Without them, there wouldn't be any of this. Without words, the Fuhrer was nothing. There would be no limping prisoners, no need for consolation or worldly tricks to make us feel better. What good were the words? She said it audibly now, to the orange-lit room. "What good are the words?" Showing how words can be both positive and negative. Leisel questions what good words are because of all the horrible things she has witnessed in her young life.

2.5. "Here is a small fact...You are going to die." startling at the beginning of the novel. Creates a little fear, but also curiosity to what the book will be about.

3. Themes

3.1. Colors- "I do, however, try to enjoy every color I see--the whole spectrum... It takes the edge off the stress. It helps me relax."

3.1.1. Black

3.1.1.1. death, darkness, uncertainty

3.1.1.2. color seen when the plane crashed

3.1.2. Dark chocolate sky

3.1.2.1. color that relaxes Death

3.1.3. Red

3.1.3.1. death (blood), concentration camps,

3.1.4. White

3.1.4.1. pages to write, pages in a book to read, clean slate (Max whitewashing Mein Kampf)

3.1.4.2. color Death saw when Leisel's brother died

3.2. Words

3.2.1. Leisel's first book she reads is a book about grave digging

3.2.2. At the time of the novel Germany bands books and burns them so Germans will only read Hitler's books

3.2.2.1. Would you enjoy reading more if it was banned? Should we enjoy reading more even when it is allowed?

3.3. Theivery

3.3.1. Leisel steals books to defy the German government

3.3.2. questions of whether theivery is good or bad? How do you defend whether it is good or bad depending on the situation?

3.3.2.1. Having morals will help in knowing whether or not stealing something is bad. If the government is evil, then obeying would be wrong.

3.3.2.2. Depends on the situation and the intent. If stealing is for your personal gain that is wrong, but it is better humanity then it is good.

3.3.2.2.1. Who's to judge the intent?

3.3.2.3. In a perfect society stealing is wrong, but we live in an imperfect world and things need to be done to create change. That is what Leisel was striving for, change.

3.3.2.3.1. Or did she just enjoy reading?

3.4. Humanity/Dehuminization

3.4.1. How does one determine the worth of a human being?

3.4.1.1. We are all equal

3.4.2. The Nazi's wanted a supreme race, and the Jew's as well as others were not a part of it

3.4.3. Is dehuminization happening still today?

3.4.3.1. yes, but we don't always know where or how to help.

3.4.4. How can we be better humans

3.4.4.1. Like Leisel, we can watch out for others even if it will hurt us. We should defend the rights of others when they are defenseless

4. Setting

4.1. Germany

4.1.1. Munich Street

4.1.2. Dachau

4.1.3. Himmel Street

4.1.3.1. Where the Hubermann's live

4.1.3.1.1. basement where Liesel writes her story

4.1.4. Ilsa's home

4.1.4.1. Library where Leisel reads

5. Author

5.1. Markus Zusak

5.1.1. parents grew up in Germany and Austria

5.1.2. lives in Autralia

5.1.3. winner of Michael L. Printz Honor Book

5.1.4. The Book Thief was written because of his parents experience of growing up in Nazi Germany.

5.1.4.1. Said, "I wanted to write something very different than what I'd done before. The idea of a book stealer was in my head when I was writing "I Am the Messenger, But it wasn't present, in Sydney, which didn't feel quite right. Then I thought about writing of the things my parents had seen while growing up in Nazi Germany and Austria, and when I brought the ideas together, it seemed to work, especially when I thought about the importance of words in that time, and what they were able to make people believe and do."