Fighting Injustice in "The Book Thief"

The novel The Book Thief is narrated by Death. He tells the story of a young German girl saving books from Nazi bonfires to read to the Jewish man hiding in her home. Listen to this audio story to hear an interview with author Markus Zusak, who explains his choice of Death as the narrator and the message he hopes teenage readers get from the novel.

Medium

Language Challenge

Scaffolding

Tweet Share on Facebook

Want to Listen?

TEACHERS: Access our daily current events podcasts for free!

To access our podcast library for ELA, Social Studies, and Science including all of our Premium features, choose the free Premium Trial (no credit card required!) option when you join.

Already a Member? Login Now

Story Length: 4:52

Listen to the Story:

Listening Comprehension Questions

In what ways did Andrew Carnegie’s libraries serve their communities?
How did Carnegie benefit from a library when he was growing up?
Which personality traits helped propel Carnegie from poverty to riches? Bring specific details from the story to support your ideas.
According to Carnegie, what should rich people do with their money and why? Why was Carnegie known as both generous and “brutal”?

Discussion Themes

In your opinion, what should really rich people do with their fortunes?
What does it take for a person to rise from “rags to riches”?

Socrative users can import these questions using the following code: SOC-1234

Listening Organizers

Fact, Question, Response
Language Identification Organizer
Deeper Meaning Chart

Related Lessons

Social Studies • ELL

Antisemitism in 21st-Century Germany

A rising tide of anti-Jewish sentiment has the German government chastising Germans for their prejudice. Antisemitism is a particularly volatile topic in Germany because of the Nazi-led Holocaust during World War II. Some blame the rising antisemitism in Europe on the conflict in Israel. Others believe it’s because of an influx of Muslim immigrants. This public radio story takes you to a protest against the attacks on Jews in Germany and explores how the present-day incidents refer to a dark past.

Social Studies • ELL

Memories of the Holocaust

There are few Holocaust survivors still living today. In this public radio story we hear from one woman who escaped a Nazi death camp. She tells the story about being led out of the camp with many other women to an open field to be killed. Thankfully, she escaped, but has lived for over 70 years with survivor’s guilt.

Note: This story contains disturbing details about a Nazi concentration camp.

Social Studies

Xenophobia and the Power of Fear

Just one day after President Obama urged citizens of the United States “to reject discrimination against Muslim-Americans,” Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump in 2015 suggested that all Muslims be blocked from entering the U.S. He later softened his position. But some say that Trump’s idea was no different than when Japanese-Americans were detained by the U.S. government in internment camps during World War II. Xenophobia, a fear or dislike of people from other countries, may be triggered by real events, such as crime or terrorist attacks, but is often shown to be irrational. Listen to hear how the power of fear and anger can lead to hate and discrimination.