In “The Book Thief,” the man hiding a Jew named Max Vandenburg is decorator* and part-time accordion* player Hans Hubermann. One of the reasons why he’s hiding this particular man is because Max’s father saved his own life when they were both German soldiers in the First World War.

    He and his wife Rosa have also adopted* a girl named Liesel, the main character of this tale. The growing relationships between Hubermann and Liesel and, later, Liesel and Vandenburg are central to the plot.

    This is a beautifully balanced story. We meet all shades* of German, from truly committed* Nazis to the likes of Hans Hubermann. The writer Markus Zusak is no apologist*, but able to give a remarkable insight into the human psyche*.

    Zusak, an Australian author, has said that writing the book was inspired by two real-life* events related to him by his German parents: the bombing of Munich, and a teenage boy offering bread to an emaciated* Jew being marched through the streets, ending with both boy and Jewish prisoner being whipped* by a soldier.

    (SD-Agencies)