In Part 6: The Visitor, a Nazi official shows up on Himmel Street to search basements, ostensibly looking for adequate bomb shelters. Intense dramatic irony pervades the scene where he searches the Hubermanns' basement:

[Papa] ordered Liesel to fetch a book and for Rosa to start cooking. He decided the last thing they should do was sit around looking worried. “Well, come on,” he said loudly, “move it, Liesel. I don’t care if your knee hurts. You have to finish that book, like you said.”

Liesel tried not to break. “Yes, Papa.”

“What are you waiting for?” It took great effort to wink at her, she could tell.

Luckily, Liesel spots the man outside and manages to injure herself so that she can go home in time to warn the Hubermanns. There is no time to find a better hiding place for Max, so he simply hides behind a curtain in the basement. They hope that some strategically positioned paint cans will deter the Nazi from pulling back the curtain. Just as Max hides in plain side, Hans decides that the best thing for the rest of them to do will be to act like a "normal" German family. He forces himself to play the role of a devoted father and indicates that Liesel and Rosa should get into character as well.

Liesel, Hans, and Rosa are nearly as terrified as Max. They know that Max's life will be in danger if he is found, but they do not know what will happen to them. They are breaking the law by hiding him, and the Nazis are not known for leniency in their punishments. This scene is unbearable not only for its suspense, but also for the dissonance between the characters' behavior and their feelings. Hans forces himself to wink at Liesel. Later, she forces herself to say a cheery goodbye to the Nazi. Hans's flip statement that, "I don't care if your knee hurts" doubles as an indirect order for all of them to shut down their feelings. It represents the way dissidents and vulnerable people in Nazi Germany often had to suppress real pain, both physical and emotional, in order to survive. Lying, acting, and appeasing regularly turned into a matter of life and death.

Liesel and the Hubermanns go through this harrowing experience with Max, but the terror of the scene is just a taste of what Max has been enduring for years. His journey to Himmel Street, for instance, when he hid behind a copy of Mein Kampf, required him to do a similar kind of acting. Rosa Hubermann falls apart once the Nazi leaves, demonstrating just how much of a toll it takes to hide in plain sight for any amount of time.