The Book Thief becomes book of choice for Chicago

The Book Thief, Markus Zusak, books, novels, The Book Thief continues to find new audiences and after passing two million US sales at the end of 2011, has now been adapted for the stage and chosen for the One Book, One Chicago literary event.

Author and Sydney-sider Markus Zusak was in Chicago last weekend for the premiere of The Book Thief play produced by the Steppenwolf Theatre for Young Adults.

Adapted by Heidi Stillman, The Book Thief play has received positive reviews including this: "The Book Thief is a beautiful story, well told by a cast of solid performers. The transformation from book to stage works quite well and the emotions that it is meant to stir up in us, come through."

While visiting Chicago, Zusak took part in a Q & A following the Sunday matinee performance before speaking at Teen Volume Conference and being interviewed at the Chicago Library Centre by columnist Dawn Turner Trice.

Alongside the play, The Book Thief has been chosen for Chicago's One Book, One Chicago which is an initiative by Chicago Public Library to get the whole city reading and talking about one book.

One Book, One Chicago was launched in 2001 as "an opportunity to engage and enlighten residents, foster a sense of community and create a culture of reading. By offering free public programming around each One Book, One Chicago selection and hosting dozens of book discussion groups in locations across the city, the Chicago Public Library aims to enrich the experience of reading for everyone."

It seems the popularity of The Book Thief continues to grow and all the while build expectations for Zusak's next book, Bridge of Clay, to be published in 2013.

Perhaps feeling the weight of these expectations, Zusak posted on his publisher's website:

"When all is said and done, I think I finally see that the book I'm writing is actually simple: It's about a boy. His name is Clay. He's building a bridge. And he wants that bridge to be something truly great and miraculous. Now I just have to finish writing it, and I'll do everything I can to make it right."

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