Contents
Chapter 75 - The War Maker
Overview
On the day of Michael Holtzapfel’s burial, Liesel reads The Dream Carrier to the grieving Frau Holtzapfel. Death recounts the massive Allied bombing of Hamburg and observes Germany’s mounting losses. Despite this, Nazi war-making and extermination persist, and it is revealed that Max Vandenburg is imprisoned in a labor camp.
Summary
The chapter opens with the somber details of Michael Holtzapfel’s funeral: black clothes, exhausted faces, and Liesel standing with the mourners on the grass. That afternoon, Liesel visits Frau Holtzapfel and reads aloud from The Dream Carrier, offering a small comfort to the bereaved mother.
Simultaneously, Death shifts focus to the broader war, reporting the Allied bombing of Hamburg on July 27, 1943, and the staggering toll of roughly forty-five thousand souls. Death remarks on the relentless burden of carrying so many and the growing cost Germany is paying as the war turns against it.
Despite the mounting losses, Death credits the Führer with an unwavering will, noting there is no reduction in war-making or in the persecution of Jews. Camps continue to operate, including within Germany, where prisoners are forced to labor and march under brutal conditions.
The chapter closes with a stark, personal anchor: Max Vandenburg is among those prisoners. He survives, but only as one of many made to work and walk, tying Liesel’s private grief and hope to the vast machinery of the war.
Who Appears
- Liesel MemingerAttends Michael Holtzapfel’s funeral and reads The Dream Carrier to comfort Frau Holtzapfel.
- DeathNarrator; reflects on Hamburg’s bombing, rising German losses, and the unrelenting persecution of Jews.
- Frau HoltzapfelMourns Michael at his burial and listens to Liesel read for solace.
- Michael HoltzapfelRecently deceased; his funeral prompts communal grief and Liesel’s visit to his mother.
- Max VandenburgRevealed to be imprisoned in a German camp, forced to work and march.