Book Review: The Book Thief

One of my new year's resolutions for 2014 is to read a new book every month. I absolutely love to read, but since I am a teacher, I don't often carve out time to read simply because it is something that I enjoy. The reality is I can crank through a book in a single day or by reading for a few hours every couple days. It shouldn't be that much of a struggle to read a book.

The book for January was The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. If you have heard about this book, you know that it was a wildly popular New York Times bestseller and should be coming out on DVD and Blu-ray pretty soon. The book is marketed as young adult fiction and appeals to teenagers and adults.

The setting appealed to me. 1940s Nazi Germany. (I am a history teacher after all…) And on top of the setting, it is about a Nazi German girl living in Nazi Germany who loves books. Sounds like a making of a bestseller to me.

The initial style of the book was confusing at best. It took several chapters to positively identify the narrator. He changed the subject frequently, rewinded the story or fast forwarded regularly. It was a lot like the natural flow of a conversation, but not at all what you expect from a book.

The story is almost exactly what the title states - a little girl, Nazi Germany, a book thief. In and of itself, it is a beautiful story about the people who fought for life and freedom and what's right during a difficult period of history. I certainly will not forget the story.

But as a Christian, I absolutely cannot recommend this book. It was vulgar. The language throughout was inappropriate at best. The adoptive mother of this little girl passed on her foul mouth to her daughter. The language was repeated on nearly every single page of the book. No, they weren't curse words, but I assure you that they were not words you want your children to repeat - in English or German. The beautiful and intriguing story doesn't redeem the filth you must wade through.

This book is being haled as a classic. It may in fact be. But that doesn't mean that we should read it, and I definitely do not believe in censoring classic literature for the sake of censorship. If you are a teenager interested in reading this book, please seek the permission of your parents first. Kindly ask them to read (or skim) through the book first and determine if they think the language is appropriate for you.

Photo Courtesy: Text added by me, http://christinajeter.com/books/you-are-going-to-die-does-this-worry-you-my-thoughts-on-the-book-thief/