The extraordinary international bestseller from the author of new novel Bridge of Clay. NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE "Brilliant and hugely ambitious ... the kind of book that can be life changing" The New York Times It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still. By her brother's graveside, Liesel's life is changed when she picks up a single object, partially hidden in the snow. It is The Gravedigger's Handbook, left there by accident, and it is her first act of book thievery. So begins a love affair with books and words, as Liesel, with the help of her accordion-playing foster father, learns to read. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor's wife's library, wherever there are books to be found. But these are dangerous times. When Liesel's foster family hides a Jewish fist-fighter in their basement, Liesel's world is both opened up, and closed down. The Book Thief is a story about the power of words to make worlds. In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time. ACCLAIM FOR THE BOOK THIEF "The Book Thief deserves a place on the same shelf with The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank and Elie Wiesel's Night. It seems poised to become a classic." USA Today "Elegant, philosophical and moving ... Beautiful and important." Kirkus Reviews "Extraordinary, resonant and relevant, beautiful and angry." Sunday Telegraph "...a beautifully balanced piece of storytelling...Unsettling, thought-provoking, life affirming, triumphant and tragic, this is a novel of breathtaking scope, masterfully told. It is an important piece of work, but also a wonderful page-turner." The Guardian "A moving work which will make many eyes brim." Independent on Sunday AWARDS FOR THE BOOK THIEF Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best Book (South East Asia & South Pacific) 2006School Library Journal Best Book of the Year 2006Daniel Elliott Peace Award 2006Publishers Weekly Best Children's Book of the Year 2006National Jewish Book Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature 2006Bulletin Blue Ribbon Book 2006Michael L. Printz Honor Book 2007Book Sense Book of the Year Award for Children's Literature 2007Winner of the ALA Youth Medal Awards' Margaret A. Edwards Award 2014