Think of the themes you have come across in the first part of the book. Select a theme and find an image that reflects it. Add your image as a Comment to this post without a caption. Have your name attached to it also.

Think of the themes you have come across in the first part of the book. Select a theme and find an image that reflects it. Add your image as a Comment to this post without a caption. Have your name attached to it also.

You are expected to create a Padlet post, choosing a theme from the wordbank and linking a scene from the book you think best encapsulates said theme. Please ensure that you include your name on your post.

Wordbank:

Migration | Poverty | Oppression | Colonialism | Belonging | Power | Isolation

You are expected to create a Padlet post, choosing a theme from the wordbank and linking a scene from the book you think best encapsulates said theme. Please ensure that you include your name on your post.

Workbank:

Duty | Compassion | Hope | Identity | Morality | Memory | Darkness | Trauma | Resilience | Connection

Based on what you've read so far, predict what will happen in the crux of the plot. Provide a passage as evidence of this, as well as your own understanding of Historical/Crime archetypes.

Suspicion towards someone you have had a current or past relationship with is a common feature in crime fiction, as even one of your friends or family are capable of committing a crime.

"It's the leftover humans. The survivors. They're the ones I can't stand to look at, although on many occasions, I still fail. I witness the ones who are left behind, crumbling amongst the jigsaw puzzle of realisation, despair and surprise. They have punctured hearts. They have beaten lungs." - Death

This quote by Death made me predict that Death himself will be transformed or changed by watching the struggles of humans, particularly of the main character Liesel. Although he's not meant to get attached to humans, Death also has a heart.

At the crux of the plot, something terrible might happen to one of the humans he loves. Other characters' responses to the death might provide Death with a whole new perspective of humanity, about their love for each other and the destructive nature of war.

Death might also become more aware of the indomitable human spirit, the human experience and ideas of resilience even in times of war.

In Historical Fiction, a common archetype is that a character close to the protagonist dies tragically and it has ripple-on effects to the rest of the cast, impacting them even in the future. Death being a somewhat omniscient narrator (he doesn't know the entirety of human experiences, but Liesel's journey might broaden his knowledge) and his unique perspective makes it interesting to see how he will react to this tragedy.

The quote of 'When a women reaches a certain age, she's earned the right to speak her mind' was quite potent in my reading, as this alludes to feminist undertones which Freeman effectively moulds to suit the historical context of her novel.

-> Danielle Gallico