Holocaust Survivor Stories

"Beginning in March 1942, a wave of mass murder swept across Europe. During the next 11 months 4,500,000 human beings were eliminated. By the end of World War II the toll had risen to approximately 6,000,000 Jews, which included 1,500,000 children, who perished at the hands of the Nazi murderers. When the killing ended those who survived were released from the concentration camps and came out of hiding" (holocaustsurvivors.org).  

Read survivor stories. 

Watch clips of survivors sharing their stories. 

Identification Cards from the U.S. Holocaust Museum

Blog #2 (due 9/2):

Visit the three websites from the links above and select one of the stories of survival that really made an impact on you.  Reflect on what you already know about the Holocaust and what more you learned through this survivor's story.  Think about a difficult time in your life--can you relate to messages of the Holocaust survivors?  Write 250 words about what it means to be a survivor.

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

When his family moves from their home in Berlin to a strange new house in Poland, young Bruno (Asa Butterfield) befriends Shmuel (Jack Scanlon), a boy who lives on the other side of the fence, where everyone seems to be wearing striped pajamas. Unaware of Shmuel's fate as a Jewish prisoner or the role his own Nazi father plays in his imprisonment, Bruno embarks on a dangerous journey inside the camp's walls.

Watch The Boy in the Striped Pajamas and reflect on what you know about World War II.  There are many topics in The Book Thief which call for the reader to have background knowledge of this period in our global history.  

Blog #1 (due 8/31):

Listed below are topics related to World War II.  Pick one that you are the least familiar with and search for it online.  After you have done some reading on your selected topic, write 250 words about how this changes your understanding of what was happening in Europe during World War II.

Topics:

• Adolph Hitler
• Allied bombing of Munich
• Concentration and Death Camp
• Death Marches
• Effects of WWII on the German people
• Ghettos
• Hitler Youth
• Kristallnacht 
• Mein Kampf 
• Napolas
• Nazi party
• Nuremberg Laws 
• Persecution of the Jewish people/The Holocaust
• United German Girls
• You may also pick a topic from the Holocaust Glossary provided by the Florida Center for Instructional Technology

The Book Thief

Liesel Meminger is only nine years old when she is taken to live with the Hubermanns, a foster family, on Himmel Street in Molching, Germany, in the late 1930s. She arrives with few possessions, but among them is The Grave Digger’s Handbook, a book that she stole from her brother’s burial place. During the years that Liesel lives with the Hubermanns, Hitler becomes more powerful, life on Himmel Street becomes more fearful, and Liesel becomes a full-fledged book thief. She rescues books from Nazi book-burnings and steals from the library of the mayor. Liesel is illiterate when she steals her first book, but Hans Hubermann uses her prized books to teach her to read. This is a story of courage, friendship, love, survival, death, and grief. This is Liesel’s life on Himmel Street, told from Death’s point of view. 

2006 Teen Book Video Award Winner 

Who is Markus Zusak?

Australian author Markus Zusak grew up hearing stories about Nazi Germany, about the bombing of Munich and about Jews being marched through his mother’s small, German town. He always knew it was a story he wanted to tell.

At the age of 30, Zusak has already asserted himself as one of today’s most innovative and poetic novelists. With the publication of The Book Thief, he is now being dubbed a ‘literary phenomenon’ by Australian and U.S. critics. Zusak is the award-winning author of four previous books for young adults: The Underdog, Fighting Ruben Wolfe, Getting the Girl, and I Am the Messenger, recipient of a 2006 Printz Honor for excellence in young adult literature. He lives in Sydney, Australia with his wife and young daughter.

Interview with Markus Zusak, author of The Book Thief

For more information about the author visit randomhouse.com

Welcome!

Welcome to my blog on The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.  

I will be posting to this blog throughout the Fall 2010 semester as the Language Arts Instructor for Gateway to College at Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC). Check out DMACC's library resources on the Holocaust and The Book Thief for more information:
   

One Book One College One Community 2010-11

Please leave me your feedback on the topics we will be exploring this semester as we read this remarkable novel.