The Rewritten Ending of The Book Thief

THE BEST AND THE WORST

She finished writing.

After days and days of persistence, writing at least ten pages per day, Liesel finished writing The Book Thief. She edited and revised the pages with meticulous correctness, weeding out spelling and grammatical mistakes. Her hands were stronger than they were before she wrote the book, and she bore rough blisters where her pencil would’ve rested.

Her book was divided into ten sections; each section was named after books that changed her life.

Although I’ve watched Liesel grow up, and I saw what she saw, I still enjoyed reading with her, pointing out a small error now and then, commenting on my favorite parts. I don’t think she even heard me because she was absorbed in her own words, but I swear that she had turned and looked me in the eye at one point. I had frozen. 

Not many things can scare me; I am Death, afterall. When the book thief gazed at me so calmly, I was terrified.

That night, proud of her newly finished book, but exhausted from effort, she went to find Rudy. Only a victory of stealing could kick her adrenaline back into action.

When she looked back, she realized that the day The Book Thief was finished was the best and worst day of her life. I hadn’t wanted to, but I had to commit and carry out my duty, as Nazis and citizens carried out theirs.

That evening, Liesel snuck out of her house with her finished book in hand, unknowingly for the last time.