The Book Thief(131)

WOOD IN THE AFTERNOON





When Himmel Street was cleared, Liesel Meminger had nowhere to go. She was the girl they referred to as the one with the accordion, and she was taken to the police, who were in the throes of deciding what to do with her.



She sat on a very hard chair. The accordion looked at her through the hole in the case.



It took three hours in the police station for the mayor and a fluffy-haired woman to show their faces. Everyone says theres a girl, the lady said, who survived on Himmel Street.



A policeman pointed.



Ilsa Hermann offered to carry the case, but Liesel held it firmly in her hand as they walked down the police station steps. A few blocks down Munich Street, there was a clear line separating the bombed from the fortunate.



The mayor drove.



Ilsa sat with her in the back.



The girl let her hold her hand on top of the accordion case, which sat between them.



It would have been easy to say nothing, but Liesel had the opposite reaction to her devastation. She sat in the exquisite spare room of the mayors house and spoke and spoketo herselfwell into the night. She ate very little. The only thing she didnt do at all was wash.



For four days, she carried around the remains of Himmel Street on the carpets and floorboards of 8 Grande Strasse. She slept a lot and didnt dream, and on most occasions she was sorry to wake up. Everything disappeared when she was asleep.



On the day of the funerals, she still hadnt bathed, and Ilsa Hermann asked politely if shed like to. Previously, shed only shown her the bath and given her a towel.



People who were at the service of Hans and Rosa Hubermann always talked about the girl who stood there wearing a pretty dress and a layer of Himmel Street dirt. There was also a rumor that later in the day, she walked fully clothed into the Amper River and said something very strange.



Something about a kiss.

Something about a Saumensch.

How many times did she have to say goodbye?

After that, there were weeks and months, and a lot of war. She remembered her books in the moments of worst sorrow, especially the ones that were made for her and the one that saved her life. One morning, in a renewed state of shock, she even walked back down to Himmel Street to find them, but nothing was left. There was no recovery from what had happened. That would take decades; it would take a long life.



There were two ceremonies for the Steiner family. The first was immediately upon their burial. The second was as soon as Alex Steiner made it home, when he was given leave after the bombing.



Since the news had found him, Alex had been whittled away.



Crucified Christ, hed said, if only Id let Rudy go to that school.



You save someone.



You kill them.



How was he supposed to know?



The only thing he truly did know was that hed have done anything to have been on Himmel Street that night so that Rudy survived rather than himself.



That was something he told Liesel on the steps of 8 Grande Strasse, when he rushed up there after hearing of her survival.



That day, on the steps, Alex Steiner was sawn apart.



Liesel told him that she had kissed Rudys lips. It embarrassed her, but she thought he might have liked to know. There were wooden teardrops and an oaky smile. In Liesels vision, the sky I saw was gray and glossy. A silver afternoon.





MAX





When the war was over and Hitler had delivered himself to my arms, Alex Steiner resumed work in his tailor shop. There was no money in it, but he busied himself there for a few hours each day, and Liesel often accompanied him. They spent many days together, often walking to Dachau after its liberation, only to be denied by the Americans.



Finally, in October 1945, a man with swampy eyes, feathers of hair, and a clean-shaven face walked into the shop. He approached the counter. Is there someone here by the name of Liesel Meminger?



Yes, shes in the back, said Alex. He was hopeful, but he wanted to be sure. May I ask who is calling on her?



Liesel came out.



They hugged and cried and fell to the floor.





THE HANDOVER MAN





Yes, I have seen a great many things in this world. I attend the greatest disasters and work for the greatest villains.



But then there are other moments.



Theres a multitude of stories (a mere handful, as I have previously suggested) that I allow to distract me as I work, just as the colors do. I pick them up in the unluckiest, unlikeliest places and I make sure to remember them as I go about my work. The Book Thief is one such story.



When I traveled to Sydney and took Liesel away, I was finally able to do something Id been waiting on for a long time. I put her down and we walked along Anzac Avenue, near the soccer field, and I pulled a dusty black book from my pocket.



The old woman was astonished. She took it in her hand and said, Is this really it?



I nodded.



With great trepidation, she opened The Book Thief and turned the pages. I cant believe . . . Even though the text had faded, she was able to read her words. The fingers of her soul touched the story that was written so long ago in her Himmel Street basement.