Max question

 Max and Liesel are kindred spirits. They both share each other's pain and artistic longings. Max makes two books for Liesel, both of which involve thinly-veiled allegories about their friendship and Nazi Germany: an illustrated story called "The Standover Man," and a long book of sketches that includes the short story "The Word Shaker." Liesel is inspired to add to these stories and form her own narrative.