Comments on: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

By: M

Wed, 01 Oct 2008 15:05:42 +0000

I agree that unconventional writing can make the book stronger, if done well. I am a fan of Hubert Selby, Jr., to say the least. But I didn’t think that the style of The Book Thief caught on at all. It was distracting, and not in a good way, and it just felt like a rough draft to me.

By: Farah

Farah — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 17:57:22 +0000

I, personally, love reading Holocaust fiction. It makes me feel sad, and I don’t mind that in the least. It’s one of the things I love about reading books about death and sadness and hopelessness – I love all the conflicting emotions that assault me.
I kind of liked the writing style. The short, choppy, and sometimes repeated sentences made the writing stronger for me, because in my opinion, not everything has to be conventional, in paragraphs, etc. Somtimes an unconventional writing style can simply make the book stronger.

By: Karen S.

Karen S. — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 01:53:22 +0000

My reaction to this book was also similar. I’m assuming the writing style was why this book was classified as YA instead of adult. The subject matter is, unsurprisingly, a bit intense–perhaps even for younger teens.

By: Heather Johnson

Heather Johnson — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 16:33:50 +0000

I really enjoyed this book. I’ll admit that the writing style took a lot of getting used to, but in the end I appreciated it. I thought it was quite inventive actually. :)

For those who don’t want to be immersed in the sadness and death you find in most Holocaust literature, this is a great book. Yes it’s sad in part (they were living during a horrible time) but its fun and funny and entertaining as well.

I too highly recommend this one!

By: Julie

Julie — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 14:06:13 +0000

I read The Book Thief recently also, and my reaction was similar to yours. The writing style almost gets in the way of the story. I definitely have approach-avoidance conflict over Holocaust lit. Like @Kathleen, I can only take a little of it at a time, but it also holds a fascination for me. (My father’s family escaped from Austria just in the nick of time, and I have other family members that weren’t so lucky. So it’s partly personal.)

By: Kathleen

Kathleen — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 06:28:20 +0000

I have mixed feelings about reading Holocaust fiction. I like that they spread awareness of what happened to new generations, but I also find them very hard to read for the reasons you mentioned above. I guess I can read them, they just have to be few and far in between.