Discussion Post #3

Markus Zusak uses numerous similes. "Sometimes there was humor in Max Vandenburg's voice, though its physicality was like friction-like a stone being gently rubbed across a large rock." (217) Zusak uses personifications unexpectedly. "She watched her gathered friendship with Ilsa Hermann and made sure to see it kicked in the shins and left by the wayside." (288) Things like air, relationships, and ground are personified. The author uses ideas and intangible objects to personify. Death itself is intangible, and yet it has opinions and seems to have a conscience. Foreshadowing is a big part of the story, as well. Rudy's death is foreshadowed: "I'm certain he would have loved to see the frightening rubble and the swelling of the sky on the night he passed away." (242) This particular foreshadowing makes me appreciate Rudy's personality while I can. When I read that "he would never ask for her lips again and would go to the grave without them,"(303) I recalled one of the instances Death encountered Liesel. Things that aren't real are given life. For example, Liesel's conscience takes the form of her brother: "Immediately. Her brother was next to her. He whispered for her to stop, but he, too, was dead." (262) Zusak's writing style breathes life into the characters and uses descriptions that are unique to his style.