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__**Individual Assignment #1**__ Name the major character(s) Name the minor character(s) In what ways do the minor character(s) affect the main character(s)?
 * (The Narrator), Liesel Meminger, Hans & Rosa Hubermann, Rudy Steiner
 * Werner Meminger, Paula Meminger (Real Mama), the two train guards (aka-the grave diggers), Pfiffikus, Tommy Muller, Hans Jr. Hubermann, Trudy Hubermann
 * Werner and Paula Meminger are Liesel's family members. Headed on a train to a new foster home of hopefully sufficient food and the ability to become educated, Liesel unexpectedly finds herself //alone// at the foster home. Her mother (Paula) has left her, and Werner (her brother) has left her and this world. Liesel is now to cope with the fact that she found her brother, dead, and she has no way of contact to her mother to know if she is even still alive.
 * The train guards, also the men(more like boys) that dig the grave of Werner Meminger. One of these men drops a black book into the snow, and thus begins the Book Thief's career. She keeps this book (about the art of Grave Digging) as a memory of the last time she was united with her brother and her mother. Liesel successfully reads this book through her determination to learn how to read and write. Because of this book, and therefore the train guards, Liesel learns to read, and at the same time she is able to grow in her relationship with her new father, Hans Hubermann.
 * Hans Jr. and Trudy are the son and daughter of Hans and Rosa Hubermann. Grown and moved out of the house, they are not seen by Liesel (and her new parents) until special holidays come around. Rosa and Hans try hard to look like responsible parents who have raised their children well and make decisions for the common good, but they simply end up looking like "coward(s)" in the eyes of their older children. This is clearly displayed in the quarrel between Mr. Hubermann and Hans Jr.

Absolutely!!! Great descriptions and insights into the characters and their interactions!

What decision(s) has a character made that you totally disagree with. Why? I agree with you that the use of derogatory words is offensive and unnecessary. However, I do think it makes Liesel more determined and driven to survive in spite of that tension. She seems to have a driven personality anyway as she has already experienced so much adversity in her short life. How does this story change your thinking? Again, you have very mature insights and reflections. I loved reading them as they made me think of the connections between life and death and, through both, how love, friendship, and a broken heart all shape a person's life.
 * I disagree with how her mother uses swear words to Liesel, calling her rude names in both casual and circumstantial times. I disagree with this because it not only influences Liesel negatively to use these words, but it also seems to create tension in the household. The words, which are very derogatory, are then seen by Liesel as words to use when casually teasing another person (possibly another child). This could get Liesel into trouble in the future.
 * This book gives a very different perspective on not only the war, but just life in general. It tells of times of family corruption, as seen between Hans Hubermann and his son. It also tells of the comedic ways of a child's thinking, as Jessie Owens is portrayed by Rudy Steiner. Most of all, however, it gives a different look at life and death, and how they seem to be closely-knit natures. Looking at life as an outsider looking in, I am able to see truly the spirit of love, friendship, and yet, a broken heart. Liesel's heart has been broken by her brother's death, and further ripped apart by her being seemingly abandoned by her mother. Life is extremely difficult to deal with when all that you know and love slips from your grip.

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