1. society
2. unrest and war

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Pre-Reading
Pre-Reading Journal (PRJ) #1: Write about a time you stole something (or wanted to).
 What was this thing?
 Why did you want to steal it?
 Did you steal it or why? If so, why or why not? How did you do it?
 What happened as a result of your thievery?
1. Based only on the title, the blurb and the picture, what do you think this story might
be about?
2. Where and when does this book take place? How do you think the setting will have an
effect on the characters of the book?
3. Have you read any other books or seen any films about the Holocaust and the rise of
Nazis to power? How did these circumstances affect the lives of the characters in the book
or film? What did you learn about life for both Jews and non-Jews during World War 2?
4. Complete the chart based on your own prior knowledge.
Prologue (Page 3-15)
1. Who is the narrator of The Book Thief?
2. How do you know this is the narrator? Provide 3 pieces of textual evidence that support
this.
3. The narrator foreshadows 3 major events that will take place later in the novel. What
are the events, and the colors and symbols that they are represented by?
4. Why do you think the author chose to have this particular narrator? Explain.
5. Why do you suppose that Death saw life in terms of color and referred to color in terms
of taste? What tastes would you assign to colors such as red, blue, green, yellow, and
purple?
Page 19-55
PRJ #2: Write about an object you have that is of great
importance to you, and that also reminds you of a
place, a time, a memory, a person/people, etc.
 What is this object?
 What is the memory connected to it?
 Why is this so important to you?
 Is it a good or bad memory?
Part 1 (The Arrival on Himmel Street – The Kiss)
1. What tragedy struck Liesel’s family family while aboard the train?
2. Why were Liesel and her brother Werner supposed to be placed in foster care in
January 1939?
3. Why was the book about grave digging significant to Liesel? What/who does it
represent a connection to?
4. What amazes Death about human beings? Why do you think he’s so impressed by this?
5. Describe what life is like for Liesel in the Hubermann household, with her foster
parents.
6. Why was school a failure for Liesel?
7. What is the ‘road with yellow stars’. Why does it have that name and what’s going on
there?
8. Irony: Irony refers to the difference between the way things seem to be and the way
they are. What was ironic about the first book that Liesel ‘stole’?
9. Draw and complete the compare and contrast chart about Liesel and Rudy.
Liesel
Same
Rudy
10. Cause and Effect: What is a cause and effect that has happened so far in The Book
Thief? How does the character's actions affect other people in the story? Explain and be
specific.
Page 56-80
Part One (The Jesse Owens Incident – The Heavyweight Champion of the World)
1. Describe the Jesse Owens incident that Rudy takes part in. Why do you think he did
what he did?
2. Rudy asks his father what it means to be Jewish. How does his father respond to this
question?
3. Foreshadowing: When the author gives a hint as to what will happen later in the story.
What is one event the author has foreshadowed thus far?
4. Why did Liesel insist on participating in the reading examination? Why did it end in
disaster?
5. How does Liesel react to Ludwig Schmeikl’s teasing?
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6. Personification – a device in which an author grants human qualities to nonhuman
objects or concepts. For example, in this novel, Death is personified and given the
qualities of thought and emotion.
I buckled – I became interested. In the girl. Curiosity got the better of me, and I
resigned myself to stay as long as my schedule allowed, and I watched.
How does the use of personification shape the readers reaction’s to Death? What is
surprising or unexpected about Death?
7. Why is the narrator’s workload increasing in the beginning of September 1939?
8. Metaphor: a metaphor is a suggested comparison between two unlike objects. For
example:
On the footpath, Liesel stood with her papa and Rudy. Hans Hubermann wore a face with the
shades pulled down.
What is being compared? What does this reveal about Hans Hubermann’s reaction to the
Nazi rally?
9. Draw and complete the chart below based on what you have learned about Liesel.
Respond to…..
Liesel
How would you describe Liesel thus
far?
Is she a likeable character? Why or
why not?
What text-self connection can you
make to either the book, or Liesel?
Page 83-113
PRJ #3: Write about a time you very much wanted to read or watch something, but
were not permitted to do so.
 What was it that you wanted to read or watch?
 Why weren’t you given permission to do so?
 Who forbade you?
 Were you ever able to read/watch it? If so, how did it feel when you finally did?
Part Two (A Girl Made of Darkness – 100 Percent Pure German Sweat)
1. Liesel steals her second book from a book burning. Why is this significant and also,
why is the day she does it important?
2. Death foreshadows that when Liesel steals The Shoulder Shrug, it gives Hans a plan ‘to
help the Jewish fist fighter’. Make a prediction as to what you think might be revealed
later on in regard to this statement.
3. How is Hans able to give Liesel a Christmas present? What does he give her?
4. Why does Rosa decide to risk sending Liesel on the important business of laundry
pickup and delivery?
5. Why did the Hubermanns avoid any discussion of Liesel’s mother in front of their
daughter?
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6. Why does Hans Junior accuse his father of cowardice? What was the ‘mistake’ Papa
Hubermann had committed?
7. In what ways might Hans Hubermann have been considered a hero and not a coward
(as his son claims)?
8. Why did the people of Molching hold a bonfire? Why were they burning books?
9. During the book burning, what shocking realization met Liesel when she listened to the
speaker at the bonfire? What does the speaker say that brings on this realization?
10. Symbolism – a symbol in literature is a person, object or event that stands for an idea or
set of ideas. What does the book The Grave Digger’s Handbook symbolize? What does
Liesel’s completing the book symbolize for her?
11. Flashback and Flash Forward: A flashback is a scene which takes the narrative back
to a time before the current point in the plot. A flash forward reveals what will happen at
some future point in the story. Below, identify three flashbacks and three flash forwards
the author has given us so far.
Flashback
Flash Forward
Page 114-141
Part Two (The Gates of Thievery - Book of Fire)
Part Three (The Way Home - Enter the Struggler)
The word communist + a large bonfire + a collection of dead letters + the suffering of her
mother + the death of her brother = the Führer (Adolf Hitler).
1. What does this equation inside Liesel’s head show about her? What is she starting to
realize is happening in Germany?
2. Why does Papa Hubermann slap Liesel? What is he trying to teach/warn her about by
doing this?
3. Why is it important and symbolic that Liesel steals a book that is actually burning? Hint:
remember who lit the books on fire and why.
4. Who wrote Mein Kampf? Why did Papa Hubermann buy a copy of Mein Kampf?
5. Why did Liesel's feelings change and did she start looking forward to delivering
laundry to the mayor's house?
6. Describe who the Jew is and the circumstances he is in at this point. Based on only this
chapter, what do you think Max's plan is?
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7. Who is Max asking 'Please, please' to? Why might he be pleading to someone who isn't
even in the room with him?
8. Prediction: How do you think Max will figure into the rest of the story? In what ways do
you think Liesel's story and Max's story will connect with one another?
Page 142-170
PRJ #4: Write about a time you had to go someplace (or travel to) that made you feel
nervous, or scared, or uneasy or suspicious.
 What was this place and why were you going?
 Why did you feel nervous/scared/uneasy/suspicious?
 What happened when you got there? Did your feelings change or stay the same?
Explain why.
Part Three (The Attributes of Summer – The Struggler, Concluded)
1. What do we learn about the mayor’s son? What happened to him in 1918 and what was
going on in the world at that time?
2. Do you think that the thievery practiced by Rudy, Liesel and the other children was
justified? Do you think they had a right to do this? Explain your answer.
3. Why did Papa Hubermann buy a copy of Hitler’s Mein Kampf?
4. Why did Max Vandenburg read a copy of Mein Kampf on the train? Why is Max
amazed by this ?
5. What do you think is the relationship between Max and Hans Hubermann?
6. Cliffhanger – an quick end at a moment of heightened tension or suspense. What is the
cliffhanger at the end of part three?
7. Why is Max where he is at the end of Part Three. How do you think the stories are
going to connect?
8. Irony: How is each of Liesel’s book titles an ironic comment on the times? What is ironic
about the title that Max Vandenburg’s book? Keep in mind when and where this book
takes place.
Book Title
How is this title ironic for the times, and
who is carrying them?
The Gravedigger’s Handbook
The Shoulder Shrug
Mein Kampf (My Struggle)
Hitler’s Autobiography
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Page 173-204
PRJ #1: Write about a time you felt like you had to do everything in your power to keep a
secret.
 What was the secret? (or don’t say)
 Why was it so important for you to keep it?
 What would have happened if you didn’t?
 Have you still kept it secret?
Part Four (The Accordionist – Liesel’s Lecture)
1. How did Erik Vandenburg save Hans Hubermann’s life in the first World War?
2. How was a relationship forged between Hand Hubermann and Erik Vandenburg’s son
Max? Why did Hans feel compelled to help Max?
3.Character: Do you think Hans was more motivated to help Max for political reasons of
his need to keep a promise? Explain your answer.
4. Why does Hans’ business go into decline after 1933? Why specifically him?
5. What is the one thing that ‘will always torture me’, according to Max?
When a Jew shows up at your place of residence in the early hours of the morning, in
the very birthplace of Nazism, you're likely to experience extreme levels of
discomfort. Anxiety, disbelief, paranoia.
6. What type of qualities did Rosa Hubermann demonstrate after Max’s arrival? Were you
surprised by her behavior under these challenging circumstances? Why or why not?
7. What will happen to the Hubermann’s (and Liesel probably), if she can’t keep the
secret of Max? Why do you think Han’s threatens to burn Liesel’s books?
8. Why do you think the narrator provided a flashback to Hans Hubermanns World War I
experiences? What is the purpose for doing this?
9. Symbolism is a huge part of The Book Thief. Below, draw the chart and identify what
each of the items symbolizes; they are actual items, but what do they really represent?
Item
How/where have we seen them so
far?
What do they symbolize and really
represent? Why do you think that?
Books
The
Accordion
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Page 205-238
PRJ #2: Write about a time you made something special for someone (or vice-versa).
 What was it?
 Why did you make it?
 How did that person react?
Part Four (The Sleeper – Pages from the Basement)
1. Do you think Hans and Rosa should have required Max to leave after the hand-holding
episode with Liesel? Why or Why not?
2. How do you think Max’s years of street fighting helped him during the years before
and during World War II?
3. Why do you think Max created The Standover Man for Liesel?
4. What materials did Max use to create his book? What is significant about these
materials?
5. Sometimes there was humor in Max Vandenburg’s voice, though its physicality was like
friction – like a stone gently rubbed across a large rock.
a) What is being compared, and what figurative language is being used?
b) Why is this an appropriate comparison?
6. Why is Max always apologizing to Hans and saying ‘I’m sorry’? Why does he feel this?
7. Draw the chart and compare and contrast Liesel’s life inside 33 Himmel Street, and
outside of it.
Inside 33 Himmell Street
Outside in Molching
Page 241-271
PRJ #3: Write about an everyday act of heroism that you have witnessed.
 Who was it?
 How did the event unfold?
 What made the actions of the person or people involved heroic?
 Have you ever done something heroic? If so, what and why? Explain.
Part Five (The Floating Book Part 1 – Rudy’s Youth)
1. Foreshadowing: In the chapter The Floating book, what does Death foreshadow what
will happen later. Why does the narrator do this? Why do Death give the reader this
information? What purpose does it serve?
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2. Why did Liesel scavenge from garbage cans on the days she went on her laundry
route? What is she looking for?
3. Why was Liesel outraged against the mayor’s wife?
4. In your opinion, did Ilse Hermann deserve Liesel’s anger?
5. Why was Tommy Muller punished during the Hitler Youth drill? Why was Rudy Steiner
punished along with him?
6. Personification: As the book quivered in her [Liesel’s] lap, the secret sat in her mouth. It
made itself comfortable, its crossed its legs.
What is being personified as Liesel thinks about Max while she is visiting the mayor’s
wife? What is the meaning of this metaphor? What message is it trying to get across?
7. Symbolism: What did the dream of Max fighting with Hitler symbolize? What does it
really mean for Max?
Page 272-303
PRJ #4: Write about a time when you felt like you should have (but didn’t) spoken up
against someone or something that you felt was wrong or didn’t agree with.
 What was it that made you feel this way?
 Why did you feel it was wrong?
 Why didn’t you speak up?
 If you had to do over again, would you act the same way or differently now?
Part Five (The Losers - The Floating Book Part 2)
1. Why did Lisa and Rudy feel compelled to commit a significant robbery by themselves?
2. What evidence showed that almost all of the German population was suffering under
the Nazi regime?
3. Who gives Liesel her nickname? Why is that name particularly fitting for Liesel?
4. As it is mentioned in the chapter title, what are the three acts of stupidity by Rudy?
5. What is Rudy’s first ‘victory’? Why is this win so important to him?
**Of Rudy, Death says, "He must have loved her so incredibly hard. So hard that he would
never ask for her lips again and would go to his grave without them".
6. Foreshadowing: What does Death foreshadow in the above sentence? Why does the
author do this? What is the purpose of cluing the reader in on what happens later?
Page 307-338
PRJ #5: Write about the worst illness you have ever had.
 What type of illness did you have?
 How long did it last? What were the symptoms?
 Did it ever feel like the illness would never leave your body?
Part Six: (Death’s Diary: 1942 – Death’s Diary: Cologne)
>>Death is extremely overworked in 1942. Death is busy like in ‘79, like 1346’.
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>>79 is a very long time ago. One reason Death might have been working overtime is the eruption of Mount
Vesuvius which destroyed the city and people of Pompeii. In 1346 Death would have been busy with victims of
the bubonic plague, in which about 25 million people (50-60% of the population of Europe).
1. According to Death, what does Death look like? And how can we see Death?
2. What are the three main issues that are keeping Death so busy in 1942?
3. How does Max get sick? Who does Rosa blame for this, and who does Hans blame?
Who or what would you blame for Max getting sick?
4. Why do you think Liesel was able to enter the mayor’s house with ease and rob books
each time?
5. Simile – What is being compared in the following passage? …she [Liesel] stood on Munich
Street and watched a single giant cloud come over the hills like a white monster….The sun was
eclipsed, and in its place, a white beast with a gray heart watched the town.
6. Why is this more effective than saying, ‘a cloud crossed the sky’?
7. Cliffhanger – What is the cliffhanger at the end of page 324?
8. Symbolism – What was the symbolic importance of the last book Liesel obtained, The
Dream Carrier?
Page 339-370
Part Six: (The Visitor) – Part Seven: (The Trilogy)
1. Why are the NSDAP (Nazi Party) coming around the everyone’s house? What is their
purpose?
2. Where is Max during this time? What would happen to Max, Liesel and the
Hubermann’s if Max is/was discovered?
3. Max says of the scissors, "I wouldn't have used them.… I'm so sorry I put you through
that". What is Max referring to here? What wouldn’t he have used the scissors for,
according to him?
>>>Many Jewish people were gassed with Zyklon B, after being told they were entering shower
facilities. Death takes the souls of the Jews "out of the shower facilities" and out into "eternity". It
makes Death cold to remember, and Death "[tries] to de-realize it".
4. What do you think he means by ‘de-realize’?
5. Of the dead Death takes this day, Death says, "They were French, they were Jews, they
were you".
What does Death mean by this statement, particularly the ‘you’ part?
6. Why do you suppose Rudy got himself disqualified from the final race of the day and
then left his medals behind?
7. How does the mayor’s wife (Ilsa) communicate with Liesel? Why isn’t she mad at Liesel
for stealing the books? What does she also offer Liesel?
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Page 371-403
PRJ #6: Write about a time you needed to leave a place because you knew it wasn’t safe
for you.
 Where was this place?
 Why wasn’t it safe? What would have happened if you stayed there?
 Where did you go?
Part Seven: (The Sound of Sirens – The Idiot and the Coat Man)
1. Why didn’t Death feel sympathy for the Germans who hid in their basements during the
air raid?
2. Why did the possible bombings of Molching place Max in particular danger?
3. What service did Liesel perform during the second air raid on Molching?
4. Why did Max have to leave 33 Himmel Street?
5. Why was Hans Hubermann guilt-ridden days after the incident at the march?
6. Why might Death have agreed with Hans Hubermann that his act of compassion was
‘stupid’?
7. Irony: Why is it ironic that a book helped the Germans live through the second air raid
in Molching?
8. More Irony – Why is it ironic that Hans suffered feelings of guilt after giving the dying
Jewish man a piece of bread?
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Page 407-437
Part Eight: (Dominoes and Darkness – The Collector)
1. Why did the ‘coat men’ visit Alex Steiner’s house?
2. Why was Rudy selected for examination by the Nazi Medical authorities? What was
ironic about his selection?
3. Symbolism: What do the crashing of the dominoes symbolize? (Equate it to what is
going on in the Steiner kitchen at this time).
4. Death says that everybody in Nazi Germany gets some kind of punishment. Both Hans
Hubermann and Alex Steiner are drafted into the Nazi army.
o Why is Hans Hubermann’s ‘punished’?
o Why is Alex Steiner ‘punished’?
5. What does this say about the state of Germany in World War II, and the fact that drafted
two older men. How is the war progressing for them?
6. How did Hans Hubermann’s job in the German army suit him?
7. Why do you think Hans’ letters home were so brief?
8. Personification:
 What is being personified in the following passage?
Even when they made it around the corner, away from the center of the
wreckage, the haze of the collapsed building attempted to follow. It was white
and warm, and it crept behind them.

Why is this better than saying, ‘smoke from the collapsed buildings filled the air’?
9. Provide two examples in which you consider the saying ‘No good deed goes
unpunished’. How does this saying relate to this section of The Book Thief? Provide some
examples.
Example
How this relates to the saying ‘No good
deed goes unpunished’.
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page 438-455
Part Eight: (The Bread Eaters – The Anarchist’s Suit
Collection)
1. Why did Liesel and Rudy go to observe the third march of
the Jews to Dachau?
2. Why did Liesel take Rudy to his father’s abandoned shop on
Christmas night?
3. Why do you think Liesel did not take the opportunity to kiss Rudy inside his father’s
shop?
4. What do you think Max’s book revealed about the power of words?
5. How might words might represent both beauty and evil?
6. What message do you think Max’s story was trying to get across?
7. Allegory: an allegory is a work in which characters, events, or settings symbolize, or
represent, something else. Max’s illustrated story for Liesel is allegorical because the
events and actions are symbolic and not intended to be taken literally. For instance:
Soon, the demand for the lovely ugly words and
symbols increased to such a point that the forests
grew. Many people were needed to maintain them.
Some were employed to climb the trees and throw
the words down to those below. They were then fed
directly into the remainder of the Fuhrer’s people,
not to mention those who came back for more.
How do the words and symbols that sprout from these trees relate to the political situation
in Hitler’s Germany?
Page 459-493
PRJ #1: Write about a time you face a fear of yours, but did not back down.
 What was the fear?
 What had made you so afraid of this fear in the past?
 How did you overcome this fear, and not back down?
Part Nine: (The Next Temptation – Homecoming)
1. What disturbing news did Michael Holtzapfel bring to Himmel Street? Why did this
news devastate Rosa Hubermann as well as his own mother?
2. Why do you think Michael Holtzapfel killed himself?
3. Why did Hans Hubermann change seats on the military vehicle?
4. Why was Hans Hubermann allowed to return home?
5. Do you think that Rudy and Liesel tried to aid the downed ‘enemy’ pilot?
“She did not back away or try to fight me, but I know that something told the girl I was
there…she knew me and she looked me in my face and she did not look away….we both
moved on.”
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6. What did Death mean when he commented about Liesel as she observed the dying
survivor of the plane crash?
7. Metaphor: What is being compared in the following passages that described Michael
Hotzapfel’s wound?
A bandaged hand fell out of his coat sleeve and cherries of
blood were seeping through the wrapping…the cherries
of blood had grown into plums.
8. Irony: What is ironic about the death of Reinhold Zucker?
Literary Characterization: How would you characterize DEATH as he appears in the
novel? Select three adjectives that epitomize this character and give an example
(QUOTATION) of his commentary that illustrates each character trait.
Character Trait
Example that illustrates each trait
Page 497-525
Part Ten: (The End of the World [Part One] – Ilsa Hermann’s Little Black Book)
1. Death is giving away the end of the story. First, it will be "raining on Himmel Street
when the world ends for Liesel Meminger". Based on the author’s language, make a
prediction about what will happen.
2. Dramatic Irony: Death asks, "No one would bomb a place named after heaven, would
they?" What is ironic about this statement?
3. “…..I looked up and saw the tin-can planes. I watched their stomachs open and the bombs
drop casually out”.
What two comparisons are being made in the above passage?
4. Why does Michale Holtzapfel do what he does?
5. Why did Liesel attend each time Jews were marched through Molching?
6. Do you think those who observed Liesel’s whipping at the hands of the German
soldiers should have offered their help? Why or why not? Explain.
7. How does Rudy save Liesel’s life?
8. Foreshadowing: Death tells us, "She [is] saying goodbye and she didn't even know
it"….what reaction does this invoke in you? What does the author foreshadow this event?
Does it affect how you feel about Liesel and/or Rudy? Explain.
9. How did Ilsa Hermann inspire Liesel to write her own story?
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Page 526-550
Part Ten: (The Rib-Cage Planes – The Handover Man)
1. What did Liesel realize when she found Rudy’s body? How did she attempt to reach
him?
2. Who took care of Liesel after she was orphaned for the second time? Why do you think
this person was willing to do this?
3. Toward the end of the book, how had Liesel developed a love-hate relationship with
words? Why?
4. What were the qualities that Hans Hubermann possessed that made Death consider him
on of the best of men? Explain.
5. Whose death had the greatest effect upon you? Why? Explain your reasoning.
6. Who was the unexpected survivor of the war? How did this person survive?
7. Why do you suppose the narrator did not reveal what happened to Liesel in the years
between her reunion with Max and the time of her death? What is the author’s purpose in
leaving this information out of the story?
Post-Reading Reflection
1. If you had to choose a different title for the novel, what would it be? Why that title?
2. Why did the author choose Death as the narrator of the story? Did you like the fact that
Death was telling the story? How would you describe Death as a story teller?
3. Why do you think the author had you witness the Holocaust through the eyes of
ordinary German citizens? Why were there no heroes or villains (except for Hitler)
portrayed in the book?
4. Did you identify with Liesel in any way? Do you identify with any other character? How,
in what ways? Or, why didn’t you? Explain.
5. Do you think the characters and the way they spoke were presented in a realistic
manner? Why or why not? Explain.
6. Which character did you admire the most? Explain why.
7. Which character did you admire the least? Explain why.
8. If you were to choose one moment in the book that you found most moving (or the
best), what would it be? Why that moment?
9. From 1-5, how many stars would you rate The Book Thief? Overall, explain what you
thought about The Book Thief. What did you like or dislike? Be specific.
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