Death's (the narrator's) fascination with the colors of the sky functions as imagery. This helps set the mood of the story. Death's eagerness to observe different colors indicates his indecision as to whether the human race is good or evil. In his analysis, human beings are capable of being good or bad. Death merges these colors into the Nazi flag; a black swastika in a white circle surrounded by a red field. Zusak compares the sky to soup when Himmel Street is destroyed by bombs. The Gravedigger's Handbook is the first book Liesel steals. For Liesel, the book represents great loss, grief, and her feelings of abandonment because of her brother's death and her mother's abandonment. The irony of Himmel Street (Heaven) is that it is anything but heavenly. Death explains to us that “sau” means “pig.” “Saumensch” is used to humiliate a woman. “Saukerl” is for a male. Arschloch can be translated by another word which means donkey plus the word hole. Rudy shows a central theme of courage throughout the book because he doesn't care what others think. Hans Hubermann is brave for not supporting Hitler, even though he claims he does. Liesel's mountain is her difficulty in reading. Dad helps him reach the top and eventually succeeds. Liesel steals The Shoulder Shrug after learning that Hitler was probably responsible for her parents' disappearance. Stealing this book for Liesel is like getting revenge on Hitler. Max uses this book to appear like a "normal" German, which saves his life but may also lead to his destruction. For Liesel, the book means Max's life. Max feels guilty for asking the Hubermanns to hide him in their basement and risk their lives for him. For Hans, ...... middle of paper ...... x after she and Max were whipped. Readers see Rudy becoming more serious and thoughtful. The irony is also that Max survives the war and Rudy does not. The irony of the title is that Liesel is not really a book thief. She had the help of Ilsa Hermann most of the time. In this passage, Zusack uses effective use of personification and metaphor to describe how Papa plays the accordion and the effect it has on Liesel. Leisel realizes that words can cause both violence and comfort and she strives to make them "right" by countering vicious propaganda with writing that emerges from altruism and love. I was surprised when Max arrived. I thought he was dead. I'm happy with the happy ending though. This quote is ironic because humans are haunted by death. Works cited by Markus, Zusak. The book thief. New York: Random House, 2005.