Previous
Flashbacks
Foil
Explanation and Analysis—Liesel and Death:
Death seems to be fascinated with Liesel in part because she is his foil. They both see themselves as thieves, even if what they take is freely given. Liesel steals books. She thinks of them as contraband. However, by the end of the novel, it is clear that most of Liesel's "contraband" belongs to to Ilsa Hermann, who wants to share her books with the girl. Death, on the other hand, steals souls. They would all eventually have been his to carry away in any case, and he is not directly responsible for any of their deaths. Still, he seems to feel like a thief when he takes a soul too soon. Liesel's small-scale thefts draw Death's attention because he recognizes her impulse to torture herself for taking what was already hers.
Related Themes:
Foil
Explanation and Analysis—Liesel and Max:
Liesel and Max are foils, united in their salvation by Hans Hubermann's kindness and his basement. Both of them arrive on the Hubermanns' doorstep because there is nowhere else in the world they can go. Hans patiently sits with Liesel whenever she wakes from her recurring nightmare about her brother's death. He teaches her to read as a way of escaping the nightmare. The reading they do together leads her to a lifelong fascination with stories, and she eventually turns the Himmel Street basement into her own writing workshop. This is where she is when Himmel Street is bombed, and it is the reason she is the sole survivor who was present when the bombing occurred. She thus owes her life not only to the basement, but also to Hans's kindhearted reading lessons.
Unlock with LitCharts A+
Related Themes:
