Analysis Rudy and Liesel’s close friendship begins in this chapter, as well as Rudy’s long series of attempts to get Liesel to kiss him. Liesel begins to see more of how the Molching community has been affected by the Nazi Party, particularly by the destruction of Jewish homes and through […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 1: The Grave Digger’s Handbook: The Kiss (A Childhood Decision Maker)Summary and Analysis Part 1: The Grave Digger’s Handbook: The Woman with the Iron Fist
She hides The Grave Digger’s Handbook underneath her mattress. For her, the book signifies the last time she saw her mother and her brother. School is a struggle, because Liesel cannot read or write. She is placed with the younger children and feels ashamed. She also begins her enrollment in […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 1: The Grave Digger’s Handbook: The Woman with the Iron FistSummary and Analysis Part 1: The Grave Digger’s Handbook: Growing Up a Saumensch
Analysis With the description of Liesel, Death alludes to the ruling Nazi Party’s attempt to create an Aryan race of superior Germans with blond hair and blue eyes. Also, words continue to play a key role in Liesel’s life. The word Communist is something that she hears but doesn’t understand, […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 1: The Grave Digger’s Handbook: Growing Up a SaumenschSummary and Analysis Part 1: The Grave Digger’s Handbook: Arrival on Himmel Street
Analysis This chapter establishes multiple characters who will come back to haunt Liesel later in the novel: her brother, her mother, and the Fuhrer. It also illustrates how early on Liesel is aware of the power of words, particularly Hitler’s. Already she understands the effect that words can have on […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Part 1: The Grave Digger’s Handbook: Arrival on Himmel StreetSummary and Analysis Prologue: A Mountain Range of Rubble
The next section is “Beside the Railway Line,” which opens with white as the focal color, an emphasis on the snowy setting. Beside the railway tracks are a mother, a daughter, and a corpse. Two train guards discuss what should be done with the three; they need to get them […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Prologue: A Mountain Range of RubbleCharacter List and Analysis Minor Characters
Liesel’s Mother Liesel often thinks of her mother and how the Fuhrer is responsible for taking her away. Werner Liesel’s brother, who dies on the train when he’s six. His ghost haunts her throughout the novel. Frau Henrich The woman from foster care who delivers Liesel to the Hubermanns’ home. […]
Read more Character List and Analysis Minor CharactersCharacter List and Analysis Death
Death is the narrator. He is fascinated by humans and the colors of the world, but he struggles throughout the novel to decipher how humans are capable of so much ugliness and so much beauty. He takes an interest in Liesel and her story, and he believes that Liesel’s story […]
Read more Character List and Analysis DeathCharacter List and Analysis Ilsa Hermann
Ilsa Hermann is the mayor’s wife. She lives at 8 Grande Strasse and gets to know Liesel because Rosa does the mayor’s washing and ironing. Many of the people living in Molching believe that Frau Hermann is insane. She has fluffy hair and walks around in her bathrobe during the […]
Read more Character List and Analysis Ilsa HermannCharacter List and Analysis Max Vandenburg
Max Vandenburg is the Jewish man who hides in the Hubermanns’ basement. His father saved Hans’s life during World War I, and later Hans tries to save Max’s life, which puts the Hubermanns’ lives in great jeopardy. In many ways, Max and Liesel are similar. They both have nightmares about […]
Read more Character List and Analysis Max VandenburgCharacter List and Analysis Rudy Steiner
Rudy, one of six children, is Liesel’s best friend. He is known for painting himself black like Jesse Owens after the 1936 Olympics and running the track at Hubert Oval. He is in love with Liesel and is constantly trying to get her to kiss him, but he only receives […]
Read more Character List and Analysis Rudy Steiner