The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Reading this on the heels of Sarah's Key will give us yet another perspective of WWII. Here's a summary:

It’s just a small story really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery. . . .

Set during World War II in Germany, Markus Zusak’s groundbreaking new novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau.

This is an unforgettable story about the ability of books to feed the soul.

Most reviews on this book are outstanding, but others say the book is only intended to use a sensitive subject to pull on people's emotions but that the actual story is dull.

Let's make our own decision!

Next Round of Books!

Each round will have three weeks to read the book and one week to discuss! Here are the titles so you can plan ahead!

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak - read 10/24 - 11/14 (disc thru 11/18)
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathon Sarfran Foer - read 11/21 -12/12 (disc thru 12/23)
Break until 2012!!
Still Alice by Lisa Genova - 1/2 - 1/23 (disc thru 1/27)
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford - 1/30 - 2/20 (disc thru 2/24)
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carrol - 2/27 - 3/19 (disc thru 3/23)
Heaven is For Real by Todd Burpo - 3/26 - 4/16 (disc thru 4/20)
Dog Years by Mark Doty - 4/23 - 5/14 (disc thru 5/18)
Emma by Jane Austen - 5/21 - 6/11 (disc thru 6/15)
The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh - 6/18 - 7/9 (disc thru 7/13)
The Apothecary's Daughter by Julie Klassen - 7/16 - 8/6 (disc thru 8/10)

Sarah's Key - Question 3

We are taught as young readers that every story has a "moral". Is there a moral to Sarah's Key? What can we learn about our world - and ourselves - from Sarah's story?

Sarah's Key - Question 2

Why do readers today enjoy novels about the past? How and when can a powerful piece of fiction be a history lesson in itself?

Sarah's Key - Question 1

What did you know about France's role in World War II and the Vel d'Hiv round-up in particular -before reading Sarah's key? How did this book teach you about, or change your impression of, this important chapter of France's history?

Next Round Requests

Okay! We'll be starting discussions on Sarah's Key next week, but in the meantime, we wanted to request the titles you want read in the book club! We'll create a list - one book per month - and publish it soon!

Looking forward to hearing your requests!

Shall we move forward?? Sarah's Key

Let us now begin Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay.

July 1942 marked a dark period in the history of France where thousands of Jewish families were rounded up and forcibly kept in the Velodrome d'Hiver. They were then sent off to transit camps in France such as Drancy, before being packed off to Auschwitz, a Nazi death camp. What is so unnerving about this whole incident is that the rounding up and mobilisation of Jews for deportation was done by the French authorities.

Based upon this seldom mentioned, little known piece of French history, author Tatiana de Rosnay has crafted a well-written novel that alternates between the past in 1942, and the present. The past centers around a 10 year old Jewish girl Sarah Strazynski who is forced to go to the Velodrome d'Hiver with her mother and father, innocently leaving behind a 4 year old brother Michel locked in a secret cupboard with the assurance that she would return to let him out when it was safe.

The present revolves around writer Julia Jarmond, a transplanted American who is married to a frenchman and finds herself being consumed by the story of the Vel d'Hiv incident. As she digs deeper, she uncovers dark secrets surrounding her husband's family which are connected to the deportations of Jews from France. As the truth emerges, the author deftly handles the question of guilt caused by supressed secrets and how the truth can sometimes not only bring about pain and disrupt the regularity of life, yet also have the ability to heal and move forwards into the future.

Find the book soon! We'll give 1 month for reading and we'll discuss starting October 10!