The Book Thief #2

What is something you do or feel that is like the main character in the story?

In "The Book Thief" Liesel is trying to learn to read and write on the same level as her peers. Because she only had the knowledge of a child when it came to school work, she was very behind in school. She was in the fourth grade, but had the comprehension level of a student in first grade. She stayed up late with her Papa every night reading her favorite book she kept from home called, "The Grave Digger's Handbook". Every night they would read a passage from the book and then circle every word or phrase she didn’t understand and then she would go over it with him the next day, little by little, day by day, getting better at reading and writing and understanding. This really shows how determined she is to become a better writer, reader, and overall a better student. This reminded me of myself because like Liesel, when I don’t understand something I’m interested in, I will spend a great amount of time trying to figure it out and push myself to become better. Liesel’s determination is shown especially the night she and Papa finish “Grave Digger’s Handbook”. “They read through the early hours of morning, circling and writing the words she did not comprehend and turning the pages toward daylight. A few times, Papa nearly slept, succumbing to the itchy fatigue in his eyes and the wilting of his head. Liesel caught him out on each occasion, but she had neither the selflessness to allow him to sleep nor the hide to be offended. She was a girl with a mountain to climb.” This shows how passionate she is about learning, that she is willing to stay up until the early morning working on reading and writing. I also identified with Liesel when she read to her class. That day in class all of the other students had to do a reading assessment, where they read to the entire class, a passage from their books. When it was Liesel’s turn to read, she was skipped by the nun because she felt she wasn’t adequate enough to read the passage. When Liesel’s best friend Rudy questioned the nun as to why Liesel wasn’t going to read, she replied, “No. I’m afraid Liesel cannot do it Rudy.” So instead of sitting down, Liesel stood up on her desk and started to resite a passage she had memorized from the “Grave Digger’s Handbook” in front of the entire class. I could tell by this moment in the book that Liesel was someone who stood up for herself and what she believed in. I too like to think I am like that as well. She knew what she was capable and thought she at least deserved a chance to prove herself. And with that, she recited each word perfectly.

Write a poem about the main characters or an event that happened in the story:

Reading and writing
Early into the morning
I can and I will