Did anybody NOT sob towards the end of "The Book Thief"?

[Mummyfor3]

What an excellent, terrible book. How much loss can a single person (child!) stand and not go mad??
BTW, do you find you cannot cope with even fictious cruelty to children since you had kids?

[snickersnack]

Me. I found it strangely unmoving. But I freely concede I am in the minority as everyone else I know loved it, and cried buckets.

[Mummyfor3]

I am not sure I loved it.. but did find it moving but maybe identified too much with main character due to German family background. I did not like death's whimsical tone but did appreciate impartiality and empathy he seemded to display to all the "souls" he carried off.

[TotalChaos]

Me. I thought it was good, but not as good as the hype made out.

[ZoeC]

I loved it and I cried. And yes, I cry more since having children I think.

[lindenlass]

I cried, so did DH. I want my children to read this book when they're in their teens!

[cheapskatemum]

Snickersnack - I'm SOOOO pleased I've finally come across another human being who doesn't particularly rate this book! I didn't even get to the end and believe me that is extremely rare for me.

[dixia]

I never cry when I read - but I cried with this one.

[karala]

I really loved this book and I sobbed like a child. And yes, after children I think that you get more emotional although I have a friend who has no children and she says she has become more emotional as she's got older and less self-obsessed.

[ramonaquimby]

am having trouble getting into this book - is our book club's current choice - I just can't get the whole 'death' narrating the story.

[admylin]

I cried too. I've just read 5 books in a row and they all made me cry at some point. I'm either a complete emotional wreck or have got more emotional with age, could it be a vicious circle?

[moonshine]

I must have a heart of stone as it did not particularly move me. Did not think Death was a well written 'character' which spoilt the whole thing but did think Hans and Rudy were well-drawn.

[surreylady]

No - didn't reach me in that way - I think for me the characters were too wooden to identify with plus I did not enjoy the writing style greatly as I found it disjointed - suspect I will be in the minority - but I did persevere to the end.

[Aimsmum]

Message withdrawn

[retiredgoth2]

...I enjoyed it. I think it has the potential to make a splendid movie

I confess I imagined it as a film whilst reading...

...from what I can gather the 'death' device will be dropped. I think the story is quite strong enough to stand as a narrative with careful handling...

Without, you could be left with a rubbish film of a splendid book.

Golden Compass, anyone??

[blackrock]

I have just finished this story. I found it hard to just pick up and read. It has taken me a while to read the whole novel. It is moving, but I didn't connect with the narrative really. I felt detached throughout, until the very end. I think it may the narration by death that has caused this.

[troutpout]

i usually do cry at books but it (weirdly) left me dry eyed

[CoteDAzur]

How old are you people? (No offense).

Seriously, this book is aimed at teenagers. Paper-thin characters, a retarded angel of death raving about the color of the sky (and nothing more profound), a simple boring story that goes on for 500+ pages, and desperate tugging at heart strings (because that makes a good book, don't you know?) towards the end - everyone's dead, boo hoo.

No, I didn't cry in the end, if that wasn't clear

[ramonaquimby]

cotedazur - no offence taken of course, but am offended at your use of the word 'retarded' - not really a term in use these days.

(and a great deal of books aimed at teenagers have been wildly successful in the adult market. But all v subjective naturally)

[Mummyfor3]

Cote: !

This really seems to polarise opinion .

I think what got to me (mind you, I have been known to become tearful at sentimental BT ads..)is trying to consider what all the repeated losses would do to a child: her father "disappeared", her mother MIA, her brother dies in front of her, best friend, foster parents - OMG, the list goes on and on. I just could not bear it.

Disclaimer: current emotional state v much affected by doing research on child soldiers in northern Uganda - there are truly things in this world I would rather not know about

[CoteDAzur]

Why would you "take offence" at my calling Death's depiction in this book "retarded"?

Are you Death? Are any of your friends Death? Are you related to Death?

How can you possibly be offended by whatever I choose to call a fictional character of Death (of all things)?

Would you like it better if I called the characterisation of Death in this book "mentally challenged"?

Consider the possibility that you might be taking politically correctness a bit too far.

[CoteDAzur]

Mummyfor3 - I'm very teary eyed these days, as well, actually. (24 weeks pregnant) Just today, cried a river reading about Australians who fled the fires with their babies

But this book was just... childish. It didn't arouse any emotions whatsoever. A step-mother whose only rendering through most of the book is that she calls everyone "Swine". But we then learn she has a heart, too. Oh the cliche!

Amazon says this book is for "young adults" (i.e. teenagers), but it has to be dull and shallow even for the teenage reader. I remember reading Shakespeare in school as a teenager.

Could it at least not have multiple levels of meaning that appeal to different levels of the audience, like, say "Lord Of The Flies" or even "Alice In Wonderland"?

Don't get me started on Death. You would expect a timeless entity who has watched over the human race for millenia to have a bit more depth and wisdom than giving dictionary definitions of elementary concepts and repeatedly raving about the color of the sky Even Vampire Lestat in "Interview With A Vampire" had more interesting monologues, and he's only been a predator for what, a thousand years.

[ClaraDeLaNoche]

Oh Cote you heartless wench. I am wiping my eyes here at the thought of the ending. Poor Rudi, the fastest boy in Germany.

[CoteDAzur]

Oh boo effing hoo. Badly written children's book. Nothing happens for 500 pages then bomb falls from the sky and everyone dies. Ok then.

I sobbed even when reading Secret Life Of Bees, btw, so not that heartless. What killed me there was little girl missing her dead mummy so much that she was filling mum's white gloves with cotton and hugging them in bed, imagining they are her mummy's hands hugging her.

But Book Thief is just a non-story written in the dumbest way possible.

[ClaraDeLaNoche]

even when the brother dies on the train at the start? Oh it's all coming back to me now. This is too much. Pass the tissues.

[CoteDAzur]

Are you going to cry now if I tell you "There's a girl and her family dies in an earthquake"?

The story has to be well told and has to have drawn you in it a bit for you to feel enough to cry, no?