How Does The Grave Digger Symbolize In The Book Thief

In Markus Zusak's ‘The Book Thief’, an illiterate naive child, Liesel Meminger steals books. The books stolen by Liesel represent her grievance, defiance, and growth. Zusak uses books as important symbols throughout his story.
The first book Liesel steals, The Grave Digger, symbolizes her grievance. “There was something black and rectangular lodged in the snow. Only the girl saw it. She bent down and picked it up and held it firmly in her fingers.” Liesel steals her first book book from the snow in the graveyard in which her recently deceased little brother has just been buried, after dying on the train they were taking to their foster parents. This book is the only memento she has left with her on her now lonely journey.
The day she steals this book is the day that her and her brother are being taken by their mother via train to live with their new foster parents. Because it happens to be this day that she steals this book, it symbolizes the loss of family she experiences, a large part of her life. The Grave Digger is the first book stolen by an illiterate child in her grievance for the deceased and those who had abandoned her. While her first stolen book represents grievance and loss, it also represents her growth.
“ Do you want to read it?” After finding The Grave Digger under Liesel's mattress, her foster father Hans offers to use it to help aid her to become literate.
Because it is used to help her achieve being able to read, this book represents her academic growth. Liesel and her foster father, Hans, bond greatly over his help with her reading of this book. Because it brings her and Hans closer together, it symbolizes growth in their friendship, and a new beginning with her new family. Her first stolen book is used to teach her how to read and brings her more comfort with her new life. This causes it to symbolize her growth; a new beginning from a bitter
end. The second book Liesel steals, The Shoulder Shrug, is stolen from a book burning run by nazis, and symbolizes her defiance. “It was hot, but it was also wet, burned only at the edges, but otherwise unhurt.” Liesel comes upon a nazi fire where they are burning precious books, and from this fire she steals the book. Because she knows she is not supposed to be recovering the books from the fire, she is defying what the nazis want. The Shoulder Shrug gives Hans’s an idea on how to hide a jew he owes a favour to in their basement. Because this book aids them in doing this risky deed, it can be used to represent their defiance towards the Nazi’s. Liesel’s, along with her families defiance towards the nazis can be symbolized with The Shoulder Shrug, because of how it was acquired and what it was used to accomplish. Liesel Meminger’s life throughout the story was somewhat of a bumpy one, and the books she steals throughout it reflect a lot. Because of the times and reasons the books were acquired, as well as what they were used to accomplish, they have become symbols of events that have passed and the great emotions that came with them.