Congratulations - you have finished reading your book! Please take a moment to reflect on your reading experience.
Did you like how your story ended? Why/why not? Did you enjoy the story overall? Why/why not? How did your feelings and thoughts change over the course of your reading? With which character did you relate best? Why? Give any other overall reflections that you may have.
As always, be concise but detailed in your response. Give thoughtful details and stay focused on the prompt/chosen question. Thank you for your participation in our class conversation!
I dont like how MAUS ended because it was a cliffhanger. Vladek was a modern Scrooge because he wouldnt give up any money.I cant exactly relate to any of the charactors
ReplyDeletei didnt like how rudy dies. he should have died with more dignity. like in a war zone or something. also i think rudy and liesel should have actually showed each other their own feelings.
ReplyDeletemy feelings didnt change i still loved the book very much.
I think there is a 2nd book though. if there is then i need to read it because i dont like cliffhangers
ReplyDeleteoverall i liked the book. it was interesting enough to keep me wanting to read throughout the whole thing. but i didnt like that i still have some unanswered questions: how did Leisel's brother die? what happened to Ilsa's son, etc. for the most part i like how it was narrated by Death, but it did jump around alot and sometimes it seemed like there was a spoiler in the first few sentences of a section.
ReplyDeletei didnt like how Maus ended because vladek and anja got throw in the prison camp. vladek had really good luck at the begining of Maus, but at the end he ran out of it. i liked Artie most because he didnt let his dad get to him. vladek was all depressing and artie was usualy happy and nice to Mala. he did suff his dad wouldnt like and told exactly what happened, even if his dad told him not to.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletei read The Book Thief by the way. i also dont think i related to any of the characters very much. because i do not steal books etc.
ReplyDeleteThe Book Thief has earned a high place on my list of favorite books. For the first time in a long time, I cried while I read the ending. Despite experiencing the death of some of my favorite characters, I absolutely loved the end of the book. With Death as the narrator, the tragedy in Molching felt somehow comforting, despite the destruction and loss. I also enjoyed old-woman Liesel's conversation with Death at the very end. The last line of Zusak's story proves his genius: "I am haunted by humans." I, for one, believe that The Book Thief and its narrator are destined to become classics.
ReplyDeletei enjoyed the story a lot. at first it was a little confusing, but once you figured out how the author wrote it you could understand it better. i like leisel the best because she just soiunds kind of like an adopted kid with mean foster parents who she ends up getting along with. at first i thought rudy was going to be like a bully to leisel, but then he turned out to be her best friend and they did almost everything together. they also could relate in some ways because both of their dads had to leave.
ReplyDeleteBen i agree with u because vladek was too stubborn and everything had to go a certain way
ReplyDeleteI did like how the story ended. Especially how Liesel had her own little story at the end. I really liked how I was able to see from a Germans perspective in this book but I still relate the best to Max, probably because he has the same name as me. I still can't get over how much I like that death is narrating this story. I just seem to like the slightly witty comments and his descriptions of humans. I think that this book is a wonderful book that every one should read.
ReplyDeletei aree with elaine about the Munich bombing, i dont think it was far to the characters to die the way they did even though that may be how things actually happened in that time. i was suprised when i read that Liesel was the only survivor other than the mayor and his wife. near the end it almost seemed like the author was getting tired of writing and was simply trying to hurry and finish the book, the character of Death wasnt like he was through the rest of the book.
ReplyDeleteOMG When the story ended, I kept telling myself, "It can't be over, It can't be over." Alas, it is and I am thoroughly disappointed. The author's description of Rudy's, and the other residents of Himmel Street's, death, I couldn't believe it, it was sad, but also such a well written closing that you forgave the author for killing everyone. That being said, I did enjoy the book. It had some very powerful use of words and emotions that helped draw you in and it was fitting, seeing as how Hitler used the very same method. It had some boring parts for me, but I knew that if I pushed myself through them I would once again emerge into the promised land, or at least the land of good reading. I liked Ilsa the best, I suppose, because she helped feed Liesel's addiction to read, and she was a good person.
ReplyDeleteMatt- he waswnt really a scrooge
ReplyDelete( idk how 2 spell it). he just didnt like giving his money to people. we dont no if hes rich or not. he could b poor and acting like hes rich and wants to hold on to all of his money.
Noooo, Everyone on Himmel street died except for Liesel...but it was a good book. I thought it was sad when she kissed Rudy when she saw him dead. I don't know who I related to best, but I could understand all the main characters pretty well. I really thought this book was just going to be boring and historical, but I enjoyed this book.
ReplyDeleteTo all of my Maus readers: there is a second volume! You can check out Volume Two and get a lot of your questions answered; its ending is much more conclusive.
ReplyDeleteI would have to say that I really didn't like some of how The Book Thief ended. I didn't like how Himmel Street was bascially destoyed. But, I will say that I enjoyed how: Liesel survived and she got reunited with Max :') ; Alex Steiner came back ; Liesel told Rudy everything about hiding Max ; Ilsa gave Liesel the little black book and the desire to write - which saved her life ; Liesel lived a full life with a husband and two children. I would have to say that I really enjoyed this book overall. I would definitely (sp?) recommend this book!!
ReplyDeleteI wasn't a big fan of the way the story ended for "The Book Thief" because I think that more could have been done with the characters than just killing all but the main one off at the end. I say that becasue they were detailed characters that could have had a longer life, even if it was just mentioned in the epilouge. Death even said that most of them didn't deserve to die. I did enjoy the overall story though, because it told the Halocaust in a fun way, not just "Hitler had the jews sent to concentration camps." My feelings didn't really change much at all, because there wasn't really a character that I hated at the beginning, then changed to be more likeable. And the story didn't have any points where I didn't like it. I don't know it there is any one character that i could relate to best, but in the part that Hans left for war, I could partially realate to Liesel, since my dad is deployed right now. But other than that i cant really relate to any of them. Overall, I really enjoyed the book,and I think I made a good choice by choosing to read "The Book Thief."
ReplyDeletei agree with Mrs. Davis on the last line being "I am haunted by humans." said by Death. it was by far probably my favourite line in the majority of books i have read.
ReplyDeleteI fell in love with the book! I really enjoyed the relationship that Death and I formed while reading the book. The story itself was so tragic, sad,and almost depressing. At times when bad things would happen in Liesel's life or something would go wrong, I wanted to enter the book and help her, comfort her, and be a friend to her. When I began the book I was afraid that the topic would be too heavy for me. As I kept reading, I began to see that this really could be the reallity of a girl during that time. So throughout the book I acted as a listener and observer of Liesel's life. I ended up enjoying the relationship formed between us too. I related to Liesel the most. I don't live in the same circumstances as she does, but her inner characteristics, like thoughts,emotions,and feelings, I could really relate to. She is a girl close to my age and throughout the book I could really understand how she felt. The book's plot was overwhelming, but I found Liesel to be a new friend. I wish there were a sequal to the book. I would love to keep listening to Liesel.
ReplyDeleteYes, Kamica, Liesel reuniting with Max was good. I'm kinda sad Alex Steiner had to come back to a dead family, but at least he has Liesel.
ReplyDelete@ Elaine: I felt the same way about Rudy's death and Liesel. I wanted them to finish growing up and love each other even when they were old.
ReplyDelete@Max
ReplyDeleteI can understand why you can relate to max, but why did you like the ending. It seemed a little bit harsh to me. Just wondering.
I agree Corey
ReplyDeleteI did not like how maus ended. i didn't realize their was a sequal and i wouldn't be able to find out the end of the story. Over all the story was very good except did we really need to hear vladek and mala arguing
ReplyDeleteI can understand how stopping Maus after Volume One would be frustrating. That is why I am encouraging you to read Volume Two!
ReplyDeleteBecause of the way Volume One ends, I was left wondering what happened in Auschwitz. I also wanted to know if Artie and Vladek's relationship changed at all. Artie using the word "murderer" seemed so harsh but justified; I needed to see some sort of reconciliation.
Did they improve their relationship?
...You'll have to read Volume Two! :-)
I don't like how it ends. I hate it when they just leave you going "huh?" because suddenly there's no pages left and it leaves you with too many questions. Overall it was a good book, most definitely interesting. I couldn't really relate to any characters. The only thing that really stuck out and was sad was when they showed the Nazis slamming little Jewish kids against the wall until they stopped screaming.
ReplyDelete@ Will
ReplyDeleteWhy do you think Art included Vladek and Mala's arguments and troubled marriage?
I really liked this book and most of the stuff about it. I liked how it was acurate to the time period and the amount of knowledge displayed in it. I didn't like that they would foreshadow most of the good parts and have that ruin the surprise. I haven't really finished the book, I am on the last six pages right now, so I can only guess how it will end. I think that I related to Rudy the most in the book. He was one of the few guys in the book, He is fairly athletic, and he is one of the smarter peoples. I am a guy, I am athletic, but I don't know about that athletic, and I am one of the nerds of the school.
ReplyDeleteI believe MAUS was a really entertainging book. I liked the graphic novel form of it, it kept me more interested in the book. The ending, of course, is put how it is so that the reader will want to read the second book. It didn't bother me too much though. I think im like Artie when it comes to family arguements, when Mala and Vladek constantly fight he just tries to avoid taking sides or encouraging on of them.
ReplyDeleteshane That was very sad i dont know how i would have reacted to it. it would either make me very angry or scared for my own life even more
ReplyDelete@ Shane
ReplyDeleteI think that I would just snap if I saw somebody do that in real life.
@ Shane
ReplyDeleteNice profile picture.
@Ginger
ReplyDeleteYeah, but there were no parents left because they were taken away. So, the only people left were the Nazis, whose main intention was to kill them off.
The Book Thief:
ReplyDeleteI really liked the story of the book, but I think it had an awful ending! It made me mad how Liesel got married, because she said she loved Rudy. Liesel and Rudy were supposed to be together, but then that dumb bomb hit and killed everybody. That also bugged me; how can you just kill everyone?! Reading the book you begin to think of the characters as real people and so seeing them all die breaks your heart. One thing I did like about the book was that Max didn’t get killed. I was afraid that the Nazi’s were going to kill him, but thankfully he lived! I think that not killing him was a very good idea because he was like Liesel’s big brother. In many ways he was the only person she had left who truly understood her. So even though I hated reading the ending, I think it was a very good book, because it taught me a lot about Nazi Germany and the effects the Nazi Party had on the entire country.
@Ginger
ReplyDeleteStay on topic. But thank you.
All in all, the book was great. Throughout the whole book, it made me sad, angry, and got me emotional while I was reading it. Death being the narrator made me enjoy it ten times more. I wish pretty much EVERYBODY didn't have to die though. :( Now even though I wish the ending could have been a little more "happier", I still thought it was a good and well written ending. Other than that, any book or any part of a book that can make me cry is a good book to me. It was a good book all the way to the very last line.
ReplyDelete@ shane obviouslty there still had to be people there or the narrator and his family wouldnt have known about it
ReplyDeleteOverall, I think the story was ohkay for a reading assignment. I CAN say that it was the first comic type book I have ever read in my life and it sort of impressed me that it wasn't as boring as I thought it would be; however, the ending was very disappointing. I hate cliffhangers that don't even do their job : /
ReplyDeleteI know there is a part two, but I don't have the time nor patience to read another version of it. I can't really relate to any of the characters but Anja was my favorite. She seemed very mature and intelligent and she always wanted to go with her woman's intuition. This book would be nice for a sixth grade class to read, but I will never read it again (:
I would have wrote a different ending to the book thief thats just how bad i think it was. basically it turns ou Liesel is just some mental person i guess. rosa, hans, and rudy's death was not at all what i expected in the begining. really i dont think rudy should have even died mainly because i am rudy in the movie i am making. the author kind of gave a cop-out ending. the rest of the book was great though.
ReplyDeleteI didn't like how Maus ended because it wasn't what I expected. Artie walked away mad, calling his father a murderer for destroying the diaries. It made it seem that the only reason Artie was hanging around his dad was for the information on the Holocaust.It was like their time spent together lately meant nothing to Artie; everything just crashed and burned. I enjoyed the book overall, though. I loved how the book was a story within a story, but I would sometimes get confused when knowing whether the setting was present or giving a flashback.
ReplyDelete@ Will
ReplyDeleteVladek had stated that he heard about it. Not witnessed it.
This also was the first graphic novel i have read.
ReplyDelete@ dahlke: Yessss ! I hated the foreshadowing. :/
ReplyDeleteI really liked the part in the Book Thief where Liesel goes and walks with Max to the Dauchu. I think it is really touching how she walks with him even though she knows she will probably get herself and him in trouble. It is very sad when everybody on Himmel Street dies except for Liesel. Why did Rudy have to die?! I am also quite angry at Liesel for marring another guy when she was in love with Rudy! I did really like the end part when she and Death sit on the curb reading her book.
ReplyDelete@ shane to hear about someono see had to see it
ReplyDelete@ Katarina: I agree, death being the narrator made it way better than if it had just been narrated by a normal character.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Shane and Will. How could you tell if there was a part two or not if you've never read or even heard of the book before, right?
ReplyDelete@Breanna
ReplyDeleteI agree with you on everything that you wrote.
Anja was my favorite, too.
To be honest, I did not enjoy Maus as much as I thought I was going to. I was expecting more suspense, which I think could have been brought on by adding more time between flashbacks and spending more time with what was currently going on with Vladek, which would have been more interesting. Also I thought it was only going to be a one part book. The ending, I feel, wasn’t as good as it could have been since it just ends with Artie storming off from his father, Vladek, angry that Vladek burned Anja’s (his mother) diaries form the holocaust. I don’t think that Artie’s anger was justified, even though the diaries were an important part of history, burning them helped Vladek partially get over the loss of his first wife, which I think should have been more important to Artie than getting a new perspective on his graphic novel Maus.
ReplyDeleteI Actually Liked The Overall Book Overall It All Fell Into Place. Although The Ending I Didnt Like Especially Since It Was A CliffHanger and I Would Have Rather Read The Rest Of What Happened. I Really Loved The Character Richieu Because 1. Hes A Baby :) 2. He Was One Of The Only People That Was Sorta Oblivious To Went On. But As I Said Overall I Did Like The Book Althoug Im Not A Fan Of Graphic Novels It Was A Well Told Story.
ReplyDeleteWell, the ending sucked because it was a bigtime, major, teasing, cliffhanger. Overall, the book was really good though. I liked it, but I cannot relate to any of the characters in the story because I am not Jewish or I did not live in that time area. I WISH I GOT THE OTHER BOOK! "The Book Thief."
ReplyDeleteI liked the book. Although it was extremely short, it was a really good story. I thought the ending was extremely sudden though. It goes from Vladek and Anja being thrown into a camp to Artie calling his dad a murderer in 5 seconds. The ending of the book was ok. I didnt like it very much, but there is a 2nd volume out there, so that kind of makes up for it.
ReplyDeleteI loved my book a lot, it was a fantastic read. But the ending was horrible. I hated how we couldn't here Anja's side of the story and how it ended saying "murderer" but I did hear that there was a second book so i will try to read it. I have to say, I didn't relate to anyone in particular in the book Maus, but I did enjoy hearing other people's stories and there struggle to the book. Also I loved how Artie made the characters in the book animal creatures. That really caught my attention. Thank you Mrs. Davis for letting us read the book and I hope I can find and read the second book of Maus.
ReplyDeleteOverall, the story was very interesting. Art is lucky to have front row seats to know what his father went through.
ReplyDeleteThe thing I like about it is how Vladek always has a way to escape or find a means to quickly move somewhere, and not get caught. I thought he and Anja were gonna be "the holocaust bonnie and clyde" until sent to the Auschwitz camp.
I liked the end of te book. I love a good Cliffhanger. I only really liked the ook cuz i like pictures and it let me see what was goin on
ReplyDeleteThe book Maus was a very good graphic novel and I enjoyed reading it because Art made you have a connection to the characters in one way or another. Although the ending was not what I expected and almost a disappointment in a sense. I was looking for closure to the story Maus and instead I got a cliffhanger as to what his mother went through because his father Vladek went on a rampage and ended up burning all of Anja's things so Art calls him a murderer and it ends there. I wanted to know what his mother went through and I understand it was the authors way to get people to read the sequel all though I'm not sure what the sequel would have in it because if there are no diaries or belongings of Anja left there isn't much else of a story to say. Though overall this was a good book and it was quite entertaining to hear a first person account of the holocaust in a different style then I'm used to.
ReplyDeleteI didnt like how Maus ended because it was kind of just a glum ending. It kinda reminded my of the ending of New Moon, when Edweard asks Bella to marry him and then it goes to the credits...
ReplyDeleteI kind enjoyed the book overall. I liked the fact that it had a romantic twist to it but I didnt like that it was mostly about the holocaust. My thoughts didnt change as the book became at end. I just just didnt get into the book well enough to really have any real feelings about it.
With which character did you relate best? Why?
I think that i most realted with artie because we both like to draw and write stories and we both dont have a good connection with our fathers.
I didn't really have a favorite character.
ReplyDeleteI read the book Maus, at first, I wanted to read "Book Theif," but all of the "Book Theif" books were gone and we had to pick "Maus." I didn't think that I would like "Maus" that much, but I was really suprised my how much I liked the book, "Maus." I love how the book was in a comic strip form, it made the book more interesting, easy to read, in a way, and fun. I loved how the mice were portrayed as jews and the cats were portrayed as Germans, and the pigs were portrayed as Polish people. The ending to the book "Maus," interesting, I didn't excpect "Maus" to end in Arties yelling at was very his Father, Vladex, calling Vladex a "murderer" for burning Anja's books and diaries form when Anja experieced the Holocaust.
ReplyDelete@Aaron, How do you not relate?
ReplyDelete@Seth, Why didn't you have a favorite character? My favorite was Vladek because he had an awesome name.
ReplyDelete@DOM
ReplyDeleteOoooh I Like Your Connection To Bonnie and Clyde It Makes Sense! :)
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteNo I did not like how the story ended. The son "Artie" was just walking off calling his dad "Vladek" a murderer. They just left it hanging for you to decide what is going to happen until you read the next book. At the beginning my feelings and thoughts were changing constantly until chapter five when they got to settle down until they got caught by the germans on the train. Then that is when i was thinking what will happen to Anja and vladek in the next book. I relate best to Artie I think because all in the book he is interested in hearing what had happened when his mom and dad was in WWII. I kept on reading so i could find out when i wasnt suppose to. Artie wants to know what happened and i want ot know what is going to happen next.
ReplyDeleteRT @ Nightmare Colors*?(whoever that is*?)
ReplyDeleteI agree with ya. Good story overall, but shoulda done better with the ending.
@Seth I <3 the crazy girl in the beginning.
ReplyDeleteSam: Good point that it might have brought some form of closure to Vladek by the fact that his wife is no longer with him but he could have at least let Artie see the diaries because that was his mums thoughts and feelings that were in those diaries so it was the last remnants of her. He should have thought about what he was about to do before he did it is what I'm trying to say.
ReplyDelete@ will, I also wasn't a big fan of how "Maus" ended, because "Maus" left you with a bunch of suspense and wanting to know what happens with the rest of the "Maus" story.
ReplyDeleteSeth i agree Vladek wasa awesome
ReplyDeleteHi this is Haley!!! i totally hacked Mrs. Davis! I love the book maus! i don't like the end because it leaves you with a lot of questions but the next book makes up for it! i find books about the Holocaust interesting!
ReplyDeleteNote to all readers: When you turn in your novels on Monday, you will have a chance to check out the book you didn't read. I would highly suggest you take advantage of this offer, as it will give you a more complete look at our unit - plus both books are great!
ReplyDeleteMrs. Davis, can you reserve a book for me? I procrastinate to a huge amount.
ReplyDeleteOverall, I liked "The Book Thief" a lot. I thought it was a great story about a girl living in Nazi Germany and learning new things everyday. However, I didn't enjoy how the story ended. I just didn't feel that killing everyone on Himmel Street except Liesel was a good way to end the story. However, I was happy that Liesel was reunited with Max and Mr. Steiner so she wouldn't be left alone or with the mayor. At first, I thought of Liesel as a regulat kid. Then I realized the differences between how I live and the lifes of the kids that lived in Germany. It was hard for the kids in Germany to find food and entertainment living in Germany. I related most to Rudy Steiner, a young boy who tries to work hard to succeed and be greater than the people that are older than him.
ReplyDeleteThe book the Book Thief was interesting from the start and the first few hundred pages went by rather quickly and without much difficulty. The begging was very good as well as the introduction of the characters as well as how he gave them their characteristics through what they did rather than just saying it. Another thing that I noticed throughout the story is that he used real facts and wove them into the story, this helped me understand what was happening and after I was done reading sometimes I would look up certain events that had taken place during the book. The book was intruiging overall and was fun to read.
ReplyDeleteNo. I did not like how Maus ended because I wanted to know what would happen to Vladek and Anja in Aushwitz. I did enjoy the story overall. I thought that it was fun to read ,and I enjoyed reading about Vladek's story. As the story went on, I did not think that Vladek was going to be able to survive forever. I like Vladek the most because I enjoyed reading his story.
ReplyDeleteMAUS TIME!!!
ReplyDeleteMkay, so I read Maus the day we got it, so
I obviously enjoyed it. The way it grabs you at the end is very nice, even though it really happened. I can't wait to read the sequel.
I like how maus ended because it wasnt a good,happy,expected ending.it ended the way youd think a holocaust novel would,badly.that sets it apart from most other stories.also,it was a cliffhanger so it left room for a sequel.i dont really know which character i connected with most,dince i didnt really pay attention to that.my feelings abou the novel didnt really change that much because i kind of foresaw a lot of the stuff happening
ReplyDeleteThe way MAUS ended really ticked me off because I really hate cliff hangers and how can you end a book with "murderer..." It's confusing. The story over all was really good til the ending though. If there is a sequel then I really want to read it. I don't really think that I connected with any of the chacters much, so I don't think much of it. The only time my feelings changed through the novel was when the woman poisened the children. I thought it was sad and extremally messed up.
ReplyDeleteThis book was great, but I think The Count of Monte Cristo is still my favorite book, with this being second favorite.
ReplyDelete