What is the rising action, climax, and theme of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak?

Your question combines two important literary elements:  plot and theme.  The plot would involve the exposition, the inciting incident, the rising action, the climax, and the resolution.  The theme, of course, is the general subject (or general subjects) of the book.

Let us deal with the two elements of plot first:  the rising action and climax.  The rising action is when the tension heightens in the book.  It is usually quite long because it involves...

Your question combines two important literary elements:  plot and theme.  The plot would involve the exposition, the inciting incident, the rising action, the climax, and the resolution.  The theme, of course, is the general subject (or general subjects) of the book.

Let us deal with the two elements of plot first:  the rising action and climax.  The rising action is when the tension heightens in the book.  It is usually quite long because it involves everything from the inciting incident to the climax.  In the case of The Book Thief, I would say the inciting incident is Liesel’s first attempt to steal a book.  This is during her brother’s burial.  The rising action begins here and involves everything that follows until the novel's climax.  Liesel meets friends like Rudy and Max, as well as the well-meaning mayor’s wife and the gentle Hans.  Liesel also steals more books and learns to read them.  She joins Hitler’s Youth and thinks deeply about the issues plaguing her country.  The tension is really high as everyone in town is herded into bomb shelters.  The climax (or highest point of the tension) occurs when Liesel’s town is bombed without warning, causing many of the characters die.  Hans, Rosa, Rudy, and other neighbors all perish during this bombing.  Liesel is saved only because she was reading in the basement. 

In regards to theme, it would be unfair to name only one theme of The Book Thief.  There are many general themes that speaks about:  death, love, friendship, war, and family.  We could also be very specific and say there are more intricate themes of World War II, the Holocaust, concentration camps, and Nazi Germany.  However, if I was forced to name one theme and one theme only, I would say death in Germany during World War II would be a good all-encompassing thematic idea.