Analysis

Again, Hans rescues Liesel from her dark place with his accordion. Also, Liesel recognizes many of the elements that Death discusses, this idea of the murkiness of humans and the lives they live. There is a blend of lightness and darkness in the world and within people, and Liesel experiences it in this chapter. While she sits in the dark kitchen, during a moment in her life when everything feels dark, she is still able to find lightness, a yellow tear. It is important to note, too, that the only bright object in this scene comes from Liesel herself; she serves as the source of this lightness and struggles to understand what it means, recognizing that oftentimes lightness and darkness are so closely intertwined. . Death alludes to how this recognition will help her in the future, particularly on Hitler’s birthday when she steals her second book. This chapter begins Liesel’s preparation for all of the complicated and challenging events to come.