The Book Thief
Markus Zusak
In Nazi Germany in 1939, nine-year-old Liesel is sent to live with foster parents on Himmel Street, carrying a book she stole but cannot read. As her foster father teaches her letters in the basement at night, words become her way to survive a frightening world. The story is told by an unusual narrator: Death.
- Length
- About 118,000 words
- To read it
- About 79 days
- Stage
- Key Stage 3
Reading time at 1,500 words a day, the pace we start from until we know your child’s own.
Where it is taught
Why The Book Thief is on the list
- Year 9, Core. The books most schools teach in this year. A good place to start.
Reading it here
What your child does with it
- 1
Choose it and set a finish date
You get a suggested target from the length of the book and your child's reading pace.
- 2
Check in along the way
A longer book has short check-ins every week or two, so it keeps moving and nothing is forgotten.
- 3
Answer two questions
When they finish: a review of the book, and a deeper question about how it works.
- 4
Get it marked, and redraft
Every answer is marked against the rubric for their year, with a reason for every score.