What would one expect to happen to a young girl’s personality when she has experienced two “losses”, one after another? It is just such a girl who is the main protagonist of The Book Thief (2005) by Markus Zusak: Liesel Meminger, who overcame the obstacles and difficulties in her new foster family during the Nazi Era. A character analysis of Liesel Meminger reveals her evolution from an enraged and self-protective young girl to a kind and accepting one after her experiences at 33 Himmel Place. 

Liesel’s vulnerable and furious nature comes from the loss of her 6-year-old brother and being sent away from her mother at the age of 9 not long after her brother’s death. At the beginning of the book, Liesel wakes up on a train and finds her brother motionless and breathless beside her. Soon after, the boy is carried outside and the funeral starts not long after. While the Mother leaves with the priest, Liesel stays behind, and “her knees entered the ground… Still, in disbelief, she started to dig… Within seconds, snow was carved into her skin. Frozen blood was cracked across her hands” (23). These movements reveal Liesel’s relationship with her brother: she is trying to dig for her brother with her bare hands even though she is bleeding and freezing. People have to drag her away. To a nine-year-old girl, death may already seem overwhelming; when it is someone that is deeply connected with the girl, it may leave her with a deep “scar” that she carries with her into her new environment. While still grieving, Liesel is sent to a foster family, the Hubbermanns. Her anger and agony can be seen when she arrives at her new home: “Liesel would not get out of the car” (28). Questions arise in Liesel’s mind: “If her mother loved her, why leave her on someone else’s doorstep?”. Liesel refuses to take a shower and “there was no way she was getting into any bath, or into bed for that matter… clutching for the nonexistent arms of the wall for some level of support” (33). All these expressions display Liesel’s discomfort and insecurity, largely caused by the losses she continues to experience at a young age. 

Sparks of changes begin to appear in Liesel as she becomes calmer and kinder due to Hans Hubermann, her foster father. To others, Hans may seem “invisible”, yet Liesel immediately notices something about him that is different: “His manner. The quiet air around him… her foster father’s eyes, they were made of kindness… upon seeing those eyes, [Liesel] understood that Hans Hubermann was worth a lot” (34). This internal monologue suggests Liesel’s appreciation for her foster father, and describing someone as “worth a lot” at their first encounter is quite high praise. Shortly after, Liesel’s impression of Hans Hubermann is proved right: when the death of her brother leaves her with nightmares every night, in which she wakes up “screaming, and drowning in the flood of sheets” (36), Hans comes into her room and sits with her the whole night until she falls back asleep, even playing the accordion for her. Since Liesel has no direct memories of her biological father, Hans’s attention may help her be more at ease. When Hans finds a book that Liesel has hidden under the bed covers, they start reading the book every night when Liesel wakes up from her nightmares. At times Hans falls asleep while reading, but when Liesel wakes him up, he continues reading for her. His love for Liesel is shown through every action and companionship he “offers”. When they receive a Jew named Max Vanderburg who will stay with them for a long time, Liesel welcomes him with kindness and treats him the same way Hans has treated her. 

While Liesel’s acceptance of Max displays her kindness, Max teaches Liesel life lessons when they share their stories and overcome their nightmares together. It may seem ironic for a German girl to get along with a Jewish boy during the time when The Book Thief is set. On one occasion, Max is “boxing” in the basement against no one, but to him, he is fighting against the Fuhrer; Liesel is later informed about the brutal nature of the Nazis. Their pasts bind them together as Liesel begins to deal with her own nightmares and not allow these events “envelope” her. When Max is ill, Liesel “rushed from school each day in the hope that Max was feeling better” (319). Since Liesel realizes that Max is fighting for his life, she begins to learn how to adjust her own emotions and keep them in her heart as she deals with them. By the end of the book, “Hot tears fought for room in her eyes as she would not let them out. Better to stand resolute and proud” (512). Through questioning the status quo, Liesel Meminger’s strong sense of justice enabled her to sympathize with the voiceless. She becomes more passionate as she finds her purpose in life as standing up for herself and the people she loves through reading and writing. 

Liesel Meminger discovers herself throughout the book with the help of Hans Hubermann and Max Vanderburg. While overcoming the pain and loss she experiences as a young child, the power of love, words, and companionship help her become a stronger person with empathy for people that are not like her. Ultimately, through listening to Max’s stories, Liesel understands that everyone experiences loss and pain. From then on, as her view of the world is broadened, she changes from powerless to a powerful girl with a purpose in life.