Narrator Point of View in The Book Thief
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Perspective vs Point of View
By Kristy Littlehale
Many students are confused by the difference between the terms point of view and perspective. This is because the terms are often used synonymously, but they are, in fact, quite different. Help students learn the difference!
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
By Liane Hicks
The Book Thief is a historical fiction novel written in 2005. The story centers on the life of Liesel Meminger, a young German orphan raised by foster parents during the rise of Hitler and the beginning of World War II. The author chooses Death to be the narrator, as he is able to convey the scope of suffering of the Holocaust as well as describe the emotional story.
General Novel Study Guide
Teacher Guide by Liane Hicks
Can't find a specific book in our pre-made lesson plans? This novel study guide has easy to use activities that can be tailored to any book, novel, or short story.
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Storyboard Description
Analyzing the author's choice of narrator and their point of view or perspective gives the reader a deeper understanding of the story, the characters, their biases and motivations. Author of The Book Thief, Markus Zusak, made the unusual choice of using Death as the narrator. This allowed him to describe the life of Liesel Meminger but also the horrors
Storyboard Text
- NARRATOR: FIRST PERSON ANDTHIRD PERSON OMNISCIENT
- Death is overworked and tired. He describes the horror of war in WWI and WWII. His perspective gives us a greater understanding of the time and the magnitude of suffering beyond what Liesel experiences.
- DEATH'S PERSPECTIVE
- As an omniscient narrator, Death is also able to intimately describe the characters' thoughts and emotions, like Liesel's trauma of losing her brother.
- LIESEL'S PERSPECTIVE
- Death: Narrates the story in the first person describing his experiences using "I, me, my". Death also describes the life of Liesel Meminger and others. Because he is "Death" he can explain the surrounding events the characters are unaware of.
- EVIDENCE FROM THE TEXT: "I witness the ones that are left behind, crumbled among the jigsaw puzzles of realization, despair, and surprise. They have punctured hearts. They have beaten lungs."
- EVIDENCE FROM THE TEXT: "Still in disbelief, she started to dig. He couldn't be dead. He couldn't be dead. He couldn't."
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