Character profile for liesel meminger from the book thief. In the novel the book thief liesel experiences many difficulties in her life. Liesel helps max, a jew hidden from the nazi army, and the mayors wife, who lets liesel read, borrow, and steal. Liesel meminger is the main protagonist of the bestselling book the book thief and the 20 film adaptation. Liesels little brother, who died suddenly on the train with his mother and sister, while being transported to their foster parents. Liesel s little brother, who died suddenly on the train with his mother and sister, while being transported to their foster parents. Rebellious in nature, liesel feeds her hunger for stories by stealing books from book burnings. The whistler is the first book liesel reads during the air raids, and it helps liesel. As a child, liesels father disappeared, and so her mother was forced to send liesel and her brother to a foster home. There once was a ghost of a boy who liked to live in the shadows, so he wouldnt frighten people.
As liesel would discover, a good thief requires many things. Liesel character since the beginning of time, people have used bravery to continue fighting in order to overcome the hardest things in life. The rest of the book is spent explaining these subjects. Liesel is traumatized by her brothers death, but hans proves to be a calming foster father. The novel was an international bestseller and is now considered to be a modern classic. Death watches as liesel reacts to the generosity of ilsa hermann. The film is based on the 2005 novel of the same name by markus zusak and adapted by michael petroni.
She steals it out of anger, after the hermanns fire rosa because they cant pay her anymore. Or would they have the goodwill to let her back out. Zusak, 20 liesel was on her way to her new foster parents house when her younger brother died. At the beginning of the story, liesel was nine years old almost ten.
Her name is liesel, who provokes empathy and compassion. In the heart of nazi germany, liesel memingers innocence is easily distinguished. Faust the dog, written by mattheus ottleberg, a christmas gift from hans and rosa hubermann to liesel meminger. The human heart is a line, whereas my own is a circle, and i have the endless ability to be in the right place at the right time. We meet her again, many years in the future, after shes just died. Characters liesel meminger the protagonist of the book, liesel is also its moral center. The book thief study guide contains a biography of markus zusak, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. She is seen by death one day and catches his interest.
The book thief 20 sophie nelisse as liesel meminger. According to death, liesels book, the book thief, is divided in this way as well. The consequence of this is that im always finding humans at their best and worst. In markus zusaks book, the book thief, liesel has to face many obstacles in order to see that she just. Instant downloads of all 1296 litchart pdfs including the book thief.
The film is about a young girl living with her adoptive german family during the nazi era. She also gives liesel a little black book, which leads liesel to write her own story, the book thief. Rosa hubermann is the foster mother of liesel meminger. At first, liesel refuses the book offered by frau hermann because accepting felt wrong. Taught to read by her kindhearted foster father, the girl begins borrowing.
Liesel s emotional journey through the book thief essay sample. Shes editing it in the basement when the bombs strike himmel street. He states that the book thief died only yesterday, that she lived a long life in a place far away from munich and himmel street in a suburb of sydney. Guided by an original narrator, death himself, we follow liesel meminger, a young orphan girl placed in foster care, nicknamed the book thief by death. Death narrates the story of liesel meminger, beginning when she is nine years old and suffering from the death of her brother and separation from her mother. She is kind, bighearted, and of course a book thief. His work is translated into more than forty languages, and has spent more than a decade on the new york times bestseller list, establishing zusak as one of the most successful authors to come out of australia. Economizing at home makes poor workers like rosa even poorer. At this age, liesel was unfortunately separated from her family, her father and brother died and her mother was most likely brought to a concentration camp. Liesel meminger is the main character of a historical novel the book thief by an australian writer markus zusak which is his most popular work. She is 9 years old at the beginning of the story, when after the death of her brother she is taken in by the hubermann family. Her soul, like her papas, sat up when death came for her, and as she went she thought of her three children, her grandchildren, her husband, and the many loved ones from her past, especially.
I see their ugly and their beauty, and i wonder how the same thing can be both. Home alternate book cover poems childrens abc book interview with liesel character correspondence significant items oneonone exclusive interview with liesel meminger. Liesel meminger as a girl with a mountain to climb liesel meminger is the main character of the book the book thief. I am writing an essay on the book thief and one of the parts is character traits. So, we think a good way to analyze liesels character. Many people who have read it wondered if liesel meminger is a real person. Faust the dog, written by mattheus ottleberg, a christmas gift. If there was one thing about liesel meminger, her thieving was not gratuitous. Being brought to live with complete strangers, that is. Liesel meminger struggles to understand humanity, love, words, and death. Afterwards, she tears up a book in ilsas library and forsakes writing. In markus zusaks book, the book thief, liesel has to face many obstacles in order to see that she just needs to be brave and keep fighting through the emotional pain. The book thief 20 sophie nelisse as liesel meminger imdb. Detailed explanations, analysis, and citation info for every important quote on litcharts.
After another ten minutes, the gates of thievery would open just a crack, and liesel meminger would widen them a little further and squeeze through. The book thief is a book written by the australian author markus zusak and published in 2005. Although they love each other, first as childhood friends and later as young teenagers, liesel never kisses rudy until the very end, when rudy is dead and liesel, griefstricken, wants very much. From the beginning of their friendship rudy has wanted liesel to kiss him.
Markus zusaks supernatural historical fiction novel the book thief concerns the life of liesel meminger, adopted daughter of hans and rosa hubermann. A stunning tale of adolescence in nazi germany, the book thief follows the life of liesel meminger as she grows up in the home of her adoptive parents. Liesel is haunted by the memory of werner and consistently experiences nightmares about his death. The book thief centers around the life of liesel meminger, a nineyearold girl living in germany during world war ii. Get free homework help on markus zusaks the book thief. Liesel is shown the true stakes of the war when her father hides a young jewish man in thier basement.
The idea of a jewish male and a german girl becoming good acquaintances is an unimaginable, punishable thought in the time that the book thief is written. Liesel meminger is a very quiet, but clever young girl. She has a very calm personality, but when under pressure, or in extreme emotions, she will explode out of her quite and calm nature. In the book thief, liesel meminger is described as a young girl on the verge of adolescence. Liesel s experiences are narrated by death, who describes both the beauty and destruction of life in this era. The the book thief quotes below are all either spoken by liesel meminger or refer to liesel meminger. The book thief had struck for the first timethe beginning of an. Teach your students to analyze literature like litcharts does. She stood up and took the book from him, and as he smiled over her shoulder at some other kids, she threw it away and kicked him as hard as she could.
The book thief characters from litcharts the creators of. While subjected to the horrors of wwii germany, young liesel finds solace by stealing books and sharing them with others. A search for an actress to play the eponymous book thief, liesel meminger, occurred across the world. Nominated as one of americas bestloved novels by pbss the great american read. She is fostered by the hubermanns when her father and mother, both communists, are most likely sent to dachau concentration camp although the book leaves its readers to make their own assumptions pertaining to the fate of liesels biological parents. The story takes place in germany around and during wwii. She is fostered by the hubermanns when her father and mother, both communists, are most likely sent to dachau concentration camp although the book leaves its readers to make their own assumptions pertaining to the fate of liesel s biological parents. Markus zusak is the international bestselling author of six novels, including the book thief and most recently, bridge of clay. She arrives with few possessions, but among them is the grave diggers handbook, a book that she stole from her brothers burial place. Max finds liesel at alex steiners shop and they hugged, cried, and fell to the floor. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one. The book makes you think about the value of life, the bitterness and suffering the devastation that war brings.
In the story, liesel meminger is forced to adapt to a new family and environment due to her past traumatic experiences. The grave diggers handbook, a training book about grave digging, which liesel meminger protagonist found lying in the snow at werner meminger s funeral. Ilsa allows liesel to visit, read and steal books in her personal library. From the very beginning of the book, death, our narrator, lets us know that this brave young girl will not observe the. As you probably already know, death tells her story in ten sections, each one given the title of a book or story. Liesel meminger is the hardworking, bookthieving, kindhearted star of the novel. On february 4, 20, it was announced that canadian actress sophie nelisse was cast in the role and that australian actor geoffrey rush and english actress emily watson would be playing memingers foster parents. When he was set upon, he was slapped and clawed and obliterated by a girl who was utterly consumed with rage.
He is telling us here the book is about liesel, her books, hans, erik and their shared accordion, the nazis, max eriks son, and the books liesel steals. At moments, rosa would scold or yell vulgar remarks at liesel. With one eye open, one still in a dream, the book thief also known as liesel meminger could see without question that her younger brother, werner, was now sideways and dead. Liesel meminger is only nine years old when she is taken to live with the hubermanns, a foster family, on himmel street in molching, germany, in the late 1930s. These prophetic words to her, early in the story, foreshadow the end and reflect the literal and figurative meanings of dying. She believes the towns wealthy should continue to employ workers during the war. Hardworking, intelligent even with her inability to read at the beginning of the story, brave, bold character summary. She only stole books on what she felt was a needtohave basis. His job was to wait for his sister, who was still alive. However, max vandenburg and liesel meminger went against this abomination during this time and during their friendship max vandenburg gave many things to liesel.
Once a reluctant soldier during world war i, he is a house painter and accordionist. In the novel the book thief, one little girl possesses this trait, in a very surprisingly place. The story itselftold from deaths unique perspectivefollows 9yearold leisel meminger, the book thief, from the day of her baby brothers death as her mother is taking them to be cared for by foster parents hans and rosa hubermann at the beginning of wwii. Markus zusaks the book thief, set in germany during world war ii, follows young liesel meminger as she struggles with the loss of her mother and brother and must go to live with foster parents, hans and rosa hubermann. After frau hermann fires rosa, liesels opinion changes. A young, tomboyish preadolescent girl and the protagonist of the book thief. Dont know how to write a literature essay on the book thief. The grave diggers handbook, a training book about grave digging, which liesel meminger protagonist found lying in the snow at werner memingers funeral. Liesel meminger is the protagonist in the novel, the book thief. The character of liesel meminger in the book thief from.
After her brothers death, liesel arrives in a distraught state at the home of her new foster parents, hans and rosa hubermann. This is the first book that liesel steals from ilsa hermanns library. Liesels experiences are narrated by death, who describes both the beauty and destruction of life in this era. She is a little, but very strong girl, who has to suffer too much in her life. When ilsa brings her a blank notebook, she begins writing the story of her life, called, the book thief. When rosa first meets liesel she isnt so welcoming. Having lost her father because of his communist sympathies, and soon thereafter her brother and mother, she understands the pain of loss, and these experiences inform. Having lost her father because of his communist sympathies, and soon thereafter her brother and mother, she understands the pain of loss, and these experiences inform her actions and attitudes towards the other characters. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. So, we think a good way to analyze liesel s character. She begins the story sent to live with foster parents, hans and rosa hubermann. Under the stairs in her home, a jewish refuge is being sheltered by her adoptive parents. Book summary the majority of the novel takes place in the fictional town of molching, germany, near munich, between 1939 and 1943. Born in 1929, she is around 10 years old at the start of the war in 1939.
Death, as the narrator of the novel, dedicates his spare time during a certain time period to talk about those said experiences of liesel. Liesel is nine years old, almost ten, at the start of the novel. Liesel meminger the storys protagonist must have shattered your notions on what a book thief is like when you got to know her. The novel ends when she is an old woman and death comes to collect her soul. The death narrates this story, describes main characters and gives us his own opinion about humans. Liesel meminger character analysis essay sample your.
1196 616 998 1581 165 222 1289 1021 1100 579 1585 391 576 979 946 884 1419 1449 713 1458 491 764 1128 764 1166 1439 599 742 52 649 498 1376 1273 421 189 288 629 632