I read the Book Thief by Markus Zusak. It actually wasn't all that bad I thought is was pretty good. It takes place in Germany. Its about a 9 year old girl named Leisel. In the beginning she looses her mother and she and her brother are taken to the Hubermanns. On the train ride to their new house and foster parents her brother ends up dying. After her brother is buried in some snow she finds a book laying near by called The Grave Digger's Handbook she picks it up and takes it with her. At first she isn't too happy about having to live with the Hubermanns she throws a fit and refuses to go in the house. She ends up going in and she grows to like them. She called them Mama and Papa. After her brother died she had a bunch of nightmares that scared her to death. When she woke up in the middle of the night Papa comes in the room too soothe her and get her back too sleep. They end up having that all the time and to get her mind off the nightmares Papa reads The Grave Digger's Handbook to her and teaches her to read and write. Once she turned 10 she goes into Hitler Youth. She meets Rudy, her best friend, and they always are playing soccer or walking somewhere. Her mother has a job of washing and ironing the clothes of richer people. Leisel ends up helping her mother and she picks up the clothes and takes them back. When Leisel goes into the mayor's house she sees a book on a table and she takes it. Leisel's not aware but the mayor's wife sees her take it and the next day the mayor's wife takes Leisel into her library, it is a huge one, and she tells Leisel she could read some. In the middle of the book Leisel's mother is cut from her work because of the war. No one can pay for something like that, and when the mayor's wife tells Leisel that she gets mad at her. She ends up going back a few days later to take the book the mayor's wife offers to her. She ends up making a thing of going back and taking another book once she's finished with the one before. The mayor's wife knows that she's doing it and one day she puts an Dictionary/Thesaursus. During all this a Jerman man, Max, comes to live with the Hubermanns'. He lives in the basement during the warmer times and during the cold he sleeps by the fireplace in Leisel's parents room. At first Leisel doesn't really like him but they end up liking each other and becoming friends. Max starts to write a little book of his own by painting over another books pages. It becomes too dangerous and he ends up leaving the Hubermanns'. Their lives get harder and Leisel's father ends up having to go and help in the war. He comes back because he ends up breaking his leg and can't be their anymore. At the end, in the middle of the night a bomb is dropped on the street they live on and everyone is killed except Leisel because she walked a far ways away. She's really upset but she gets over it. Later on when Leisel's older Max comes to her. Not really sure what happens to Max but Leisel grows up, gets a husband and has some kids and some grandchildren. She ends up dying of old age. I thought is was a pretty good book and would be a good choice for someone who likes to read about World War II.