The Book Thief - Markus Zusak

 

 Summary

Goodreads:  It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.

Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who 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.

In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak, author of I Am the Messenger, has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time.


Thoughts

 Let me start with this:  This was a truly memorable book, and I am glad I read it.  Now remember that I have said this as you read through the rest of this post.

So.  I finally read this.  It took me 5 years to work up the courage to do it, and I'm glad I did.  Even if I will never read this again.  I am not going to review this book.  There are so many great reviews out already, and honestly I just don't want to revisit the details of this book.  I am going to talk about how it made me feel.  Guys, this book destroyed me.  I honestly can't think of a book that made my soul hurt more at the end of the book, and that includes The Amber Spyglass, The Bridge to Terabithia, and The Island of the Blue Dolphins combined.  I don't think I knew how invested I was in the characters until...well things happened.  You know at the beginning who is going to die, so it isn't even a surprise!  I seriously ugly cried through the last quarter of this book.  I literally had to put the book down because I was crying so hard I couldn't read.  It wrecked me.  And I still can't tell you why this hit me so hard (I mean it surpassed my epic crying in the last Harry Potter book!  And I had a connection with those characters for years! I could still read the end of the book after the last battle, if barely)

So yes, this book is phenomenal, and I'm glad I read it, even if it hurts to think about.  But what I don't understand...people do this to themselves YEARLY!  They reread this book every. single. year.  How do you survive that?!?  I read this book and immediately went into hermit mode and didn't want to talk to anyone about it at all!  I had been looking forward to watching the movie, but even Geoffrey Rush won't get me to see this, because why would you want to relive this??

Would I recommend this to everyone?  No.  Should everyone read this?  Probably.  But you know what?  Some people don't like reading books that hurt, and I wouldn't inflict this book on anyone who wasn't prepared to be devastated. 

Mozart's Sister - Rita Charbonnier

Synopsis

The fascinating life of Wolfgang’s older sister, Nannerl—whose talent may have equaled her brother’s

Maria Anna Walburga Ignatia Mozart, affectionately called Nannerl by her family, could play the piano with an otherworldly skill from the time she was a child. At the tender age of five, she gave her first public performance, amazing the assembled gentlemen and ladies with the beautiful music she created.

Yet it was her brother, Wolfgang, who carried their father’s dreams of glory. As the siblings matured, Nannerl’s prodigious talent was brushed aside. Instead of playing alongside her brother in the world’s great cities, she was forced to stop performing and become a provincial piano teacher to support Wolfgang’s career. Nannerl might have accepted this life in her brother’s shadow but for the appearance of a potential suitor who reawakened her passion for life, for love, for music—and who threatened to upset the delicate balance that kept the Mozart family in harmony.

Thoughts

I thought this book was fantastic! Mozart is a household name, yet little is known about h
is prodigy sister. The story was very compelling and I felt the heartbreak and frustration with the protagonist (Mozart's sister). The story is told through different mediums - various letters, although most of the tale is told following Nannerl's point of view. It follows her growth from a young girl full of promise, to a bitter young woman, and ends as she finds herself a mature, grown woman who creates her own happiness. I was pleased to find this book was well researched - Mozart's travels, Nannerl composing, the beliefs and actions of the time period - all of these things are true. The liberties taken during this story to make it a fiction of work are very believable - and probably not too far off from what could have happened.

Overall

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. Full of truth, yet without the stagnancy of a history text, there is much to be learned from this novel. The prose was well-written, the plot well thought out - overall a very well put together book. It has a little bit of everything - romance, drama, and most of all, music.

Recommended

Firstly, the music lovers - this would speak to you. Historical fiction lovers would also love this novel, as well as those who enjoy a strong female figure.