Forgot I never posted my review of this book! It took me several tries to get momentum going, but once I did, I saw why this book got all the acclaim that it did. The writing is like nothing else I've ever read, and does a superb job using imagery as emotion. I also enjoyed the use of lists. The sky is very nearly a physical object in this book -- perhaps the membrane between worlds? The intricacy of it all had me looking for discussion guides to see what others thought. And though I knew the ending since it was described in the beginning, the ensuing knowledge of each character made it that much harder to read the end again. I cried. 
 Favorite quotes: 
 "Somewhere, far down, there was an itch in his heart, but he made it a point not to scratch it. He was afraid of what might come leaking out." 
 "It was one of those moments of perfect tiredness, of having conquered not only the work at hand, but the night who had blocked the way." 
 "a man with a hemispheric waistline" 
 "Somehow, Hans Hubermann always knew what to say, when to stay, and when to leave her be. Perhaps Liesel was the one thing he was a true expert at." 
 "Make no mistake, the woman had a heart. She had a bigger one than people would think. There was a lot in it, stored up, high in miles of hidden shelving."