Rosa Hubberman

[Sara S.]

It is almost impossible to imagine Rosa Hubberman without her refreshing honesty and a river of colorful German swears running from her mouth. The reader learns very quickly that Rosa has a disposition that "wasn't really enviable." (Zusak 26) She swears constantly, uses a wooden spoon as punishment, and harbors unmoving grudges. In fact, the first words of Rosa Hubberman when she saw Liesel, not budging from the seat of a car, were '"What's wrong with this child?"' (Zusak 28) However, the reader also learns that Rosa has a vulnerable, caring side. The author writes, "Rosa was sitting with the accordian, praying. "Make them come back alive," she repeated." (Zusak 474) In what ways did Rosa's fiery temperament and unforgiving honesty impact Liesel and the plot? Why do you think the author chose to show some of her softer side?

[Tuli Freeman]

Though Rosa was a harsh person, her rude attitude was her way of showing her love, if it could be interpreted as such, and how she protected her family. The author introduced her softer side to show that under that harshness was a normal person, and showed that person because of the circumstances the Huberman household was in. With her husband gone at war, Rosa feared for him, and the worry showed, if only in the dead of night. She's like those chocolate candy balls, hard and crunch on the outside, but soft a creamy on the inside.

[Holly]

At the very end of the novel, Liesel discovers Rosa and Hans dead on Himmel street. Liesel speaks to Rosa of all the times she was loving and kind. " 'Remember when I came here, Mama? I clung to the gate and cried. Do you remember what you said too everyone on the street that day?' Her voice wavered now. 'You said, 'What are you assholes looking at?'" (Zusak Pg 537). Like Sara stated, Rosa does have a colorful word choice that might not always be the most appropriate, but she does care for Liesel and Hans no matter how much she tries to hide it.

[millaberemski]

Even though Rosa was mostly harsh towards Liesel and everyone around her, it was her way of expressing her love, like Tuli said. I also think she was especially mean in the beginning of the novel because she didn't know how to act towards Liesel. She was a stranger who just lost her brother and she wanted to look like she was prepared, strong, and a good mother, and she thought that could be shown through being rude. The author introduced the softer side of her towards the end of the story to show that Rosa did care for her family and wasn't always so rude towards everyone. It showed how vulnerable she really was and that her toughness was her trying to cover up the fact that she was hurting on the inside due to everything that had happened to her and her loved ones. The author introduced it to show that she was a human with feelings and not just someone without a soul.