Dead letters

Liesel waits for the letter that will never come, the saddened Hans watching over her. With no gifts for her birthday this year, she spends Rosa's washing money for herself and the rest to send letters. She admits this to Rosa and gets a wooden spoon beating which was not the worst part because she now has the realization that she will never see her mother again. Rosa apologizes and Hans play the accordion for her.

Germany is preparing for a large celebration in honor of the Führer. Trudy and Hans Junior, Hans and Rosa's grown children, comes and Hans Junior asks his father if he's attempted to join the Nazi Party again. Hans's application was rejected on a prior attempt because he painted over slurs painted on a Jewish shop front, which names him "the Jew painter." Hans Junior is an avid supporter of the Nazi Party and calls him coward for not trying harder to join and for his lack of support for his country, also calling Liesel's books "trash" as she should be reading Mein Kampf instead. Death explains that he will later die fighting the Soviets at Stalingrad.

Hitler's birthday, 1940