How do I find words?

Books everywhere! Each wall was armed with overcrowded yet immaculate shelving. It was barely possible to see the paintwork. There were all different styles and sizes of lettering on the spines of the black, the red, the gray, the every colored books. It was one of the most beautiful things Liesel Meminger had ever seen.

With wonder she smiled.
That such a room existed!

I am such a nerd. I know exactly what Liesel is thinking and why that room is so magical to her. I've been waiting all day to blog about this. I've been mustering up lines and words in my mind to use, and many of them are lost to me now. But I will write anyway.

I just finished reading The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. I know that many of you have already read it, but if you haven't, you should strongly consider it. It is not very often that I have a book move me as this one did. I finished it last night in a daze of emotion. Enoch was reading another copy of it beside me and we finished within a few minutes of each other. He looked over at me with tears in my eyes, and we talked about the book's sadness--and hope.

So many powerful images for me. The mayor's wife's library; Max, in his withered state hiding in the basement; the Jews marching to Dachau; all the myriad colors of sky the author describes. But the image that gets me, that haunts me, is the image of her emerging from the rubble of the bombing and calling her Papa's name over and over again.

It's entirely fictional and yet, Zusak writes the characters so well that I want to believe they lived and struggled in WWII Germany. This is a piece of young adult Holocaust lit, but written from the "poor German, I'm not really on anyone's side, I'm just trying to survive" perspective. The voice and poetry of the language is also distinctive.

I'm looking forward to discussing it with members of my book club this Friday night, and I also appreciate that the young adult lit class I am taking at ASU has encouraged me to read it as well.

It has also made me think much about the power of words to save us and help us survive. I hope I am never one to silence people.

And in answer to my friend Darci's question about other good Holocaust lit for younger readers, I would also suggest The Diary of Anne Frank and Number the Stars by Lois Lowry. If any of you know any other good titles, please feel free to suggest. She has been reading with her 12 year old daughter and would like to try some new and different things.

I am grateful for books, for words, and for the discussions and actions they inspire.