Part 1 Chapters 1-2
In the first chapter, it starts off by the narrator talking about the last time he saw the book thief when the sky was "red". (As explained in the prologue, the red represents bombs.) Here, he only talks about it for a few lines, and it sounds as if he is talking to himself, and not necessarily explaining the event in detail. After the soliloquy, the story takes off. The plot takes place in 1939 when the book thief was nine years old. She and her brother, Werner were on their way to Munich, where they would be handed over to their foster parents. Riding on a train, their mother fully asleep, with Werner in her arms, the book thief sat next to her, half asleep. It was then when she realized that something was wrong with her brother. His lifeless body laid there sideways and before she knew it, it was too late. Looking for the right timing, the narrator decided to "extract his soul". He described the little boy's spirit as "soft and cold, like ice cream." The burial was done two days later, with Liesel, her mother, a pair of train guards, and a pair of grave diggers. When everything was done and the grave diggers were walking away to leave, one of them accidentally dropped a book, without notice. A few moments later, Liesel picked up the book and took it with her. As hard as it was, she and her mother continued to ride on the train, heading to Munich. When the train pulled up to the station, they headed to the office where the mother would explain the death of her son, to the authorities. (This is to let them know that there would only be one foster kid, Liesel that would enter the foster family.) Soon after, Liesel was taken to her foster home, in Himmel street, where she would meet Hans and Rosa Hubermann.
In the second chapter, it talks about the first two weeks of the foster home life, and what type of people Hans and Rosa Hubermann is. Aside from that, there was a small part where the narrator talks about Liesel's father, from her perspective. Liesel couldn't remember what her father looked like, or even what kind of person he was. All she knew was that the word "communist" had something to do with him. The problem was that she did not understand what it meant, and her mother would not tell her the meaning of it either. Back to her life in her new foster home, Rosa Hubermann, the foster mother, would be aggressive with her at times. For example, the day Liesel arrived at her new home, she would resist taking a bath, which made Rosa call her a "filthy pig". However, according to the narrator, Rosa did love Liesel, it was just that "her way of showing it as strange." When the abuse was taking place in the bathroom, Hans, the foster father came in and said, "Leave her alone". Hans sat against the wall and out of nowhere, he asked if Liesel could roll a cigarette. So there they were, rolling cigarettes together for the next hour or so. It was two weeks later that Liesel finally took a bath, and received an "injury-inducing hug" from Rosa.
In the second chapter, there is also a part where the narrator explains what type of person Hans is. First off, he loved to smoke, and his favorite part was the rolling. He was a painter by trade and played the piano accordion. And according to the narrator, the accordion came in handy especially in winter, as he could make some money by playing them in pubs. However, with all the talent he had, he was "barely visible" to people. Sure, his painting skills were amazing, and his musical ability was better than average. Somehow though, "he was able to appear as merely part of the background". Nonetheless, it did not go unnoticed by Liesel. She saw it instantly, his manners and the quite air around him. She understood that Hans Hubermann was worth a lot.
When I read the first few pages of this chapter, I was able to recognize the scene, as the part where the boy had died on the train, was introduced in the prologue. However, reading the first chapter, it made me question the need for the explanation in the prologue, as it would not sound strange at all, even if starting from the first chapter, skipping the prologue. (Aside from the explanation of the narrator himself.) I also noticed that at the beginning of the chapters, the narrator talks about Liesel, even if it has nothing to do with the main point of the chapter. In addition, the way the narrator talks about her sounds as if he is in a state of soliloquy. In fact, after talking about Liesel at the beginning of chapter two, he said "In any case, that's getting ahead of myself. Before we make it to any of that..." Overall, even though there was a tragedy, in the beginning, I am excited about Liesel's new foster parents, as Hans seems to be a good person.
In the second chapter, it talks about the first two weeks of the foster home life, and what type of people Hans and Rosa Hubermann is. Aside from that, there was a small part where the narrator talks about Liesel's father, from her perspective. Liesel couldn't remember what her father looked like, or even what kind of person he was. All she knew was that the word "communist" had something to do with him. The problem was that she did not understand what it meant, and her mother would not tell her the meaning of it either. Back to her life in her new foster home, Rosa Hubermann, the foster mother, would be aggressive with her at times. For example, the day Liesel arrived at her new home, she would resist taking a bath, which made Rosa call her a "filthy pig". However, according to the narrator, Rosa did love Liesel, it was just that "her way of showing it as strange." When the abuse was taking place in the bathroom, Hans, the foster father came in and said, "Leave her alone". Hans sat against the wall and out of nowhere, he asked if Liesel could roll a cigarette. So there they were, rolling cigarettes together for the next hour or so. It was two weeks later that Liesel finally took a bath, and received an "injury-inducing hug" from Rosa.
In the second chapter, there is also a part where the narrator explains what type of person Hans is. First off, he loved to smoke, and his favorite part was the rolling. He was a painter by trade and played the piano accordion. And according to the narrator, the accordion came in handy especially in winter, as he could make some money by playing them in pubs. However, with all the talent he had, he was "barely visible" to people. Sure, his painting skills were amazing, and his musical ability was better than average. Somehow though, "he was able to appear as merely part of the background". Nonetheless, it did not go unnoticed by Liesel. She saw it instantly, his manners and the quite air around him. She understood that Hans Hubermann was worth a lot.
When I read the first few pages of this chapter, I was able to recognize the scene, as the part where the boy had died on the train, was introduced in the prologue. However, reading the first chapter, it made me question the need for the explanation in the prologue, as it would not sound strange at all, even if starting from the first chapter, skipping the prologue. (Aside from the explanation of the narrator himself.) I also noticed that at the beginning of the chapters, the narrator talks about Liesel, even if it has nothing to do with the main point of the chapter. In addition, the way the narrator talks about her sounds as if he is in a state of soliloquy. In fact, after talking about Liesel at the beginning of chapter two, he said "In any case, that's getting ahead of myself. Before we make it to any of that..." Overall, even though there was a tragedy, in the beginning, I am excited about Liesel's new foster parents, as Hans seems to be a good person.
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