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The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

by John Boyne

3.98 · rating details · 39,954 ratings · 5,529 reviews

Berlin 1942
When Bruno returns home from school one day, he discovers that his belongings are being packed in crates. His father has received a promotion and the family must move from their home to a new house far far away, where there is no one to play with and nothing to do. A tall fence running alongside stretches as far as the eye can see and cuts him off from the stran...more

Paperback, 216 pages

Published October 28th 2008 by David Fickling Books (first published September 12th 2006)

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Nov 12, 2007

Brandy rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 2007reads, audiobooks, teen, historical, library

I hardly know where to begin bashing this book. Do I start with the 9-year-old boy and his 12-year-old sister, who read about 6 and 8, respectively? The imperial measurements (miles, feet) despite the German setting? The German boy, raised in Berlin, who thinks that Der Führer is "The Fury" and Auschwitz is "Out-With," despite being corrected several times and seeing it written down? The other English-language idioms and mis-hearings, despite our being told that he speaks ...moreI hardly know where to begin bashing this book. Do I start with the 9-year-old boy and his 12-year-old sister, who read about 6 and 8, respectively? The imperial measurements (miles, feet) despite the German setting? The German boy, raised in Berlin, who thinks that Der Führer is "The Fury" and Auschwitz is "Out-With," despite being corrected several times and seeing it written down? The other English-language idioms and mis-hearings, despite our being told that he speaks only German? And that he believes that "Heil Hitler!" is a fancy word for hello, because he understands neither "Heil" nor "Hitler"?

So maybe these are fussy issues, and I shouldn't trash the book on these minor linguistic flaws. Instead, I can start with the plot holes big enough to drive a truck through: that Bruno, whose father is a high-ranking official in "The Fury"'s regime, doesn't know what a Jew is, or that he's living next door to a concentration camp. Or that the people wearing the "striped pajamas" are being killed, and THAT's why they don't get up after the soldiers stand close to them and there are sounds "like gunshots." Or that there's a section of fence that is (a) unpatrolled and (b) can be lifted from the ground high enough to pass food and, eventually, a small boy through, AND that nobody would try to get OUT through this hole. Or that Bruno's friend Shmuel, a frail 9-year-old boy, would survive over a year in a Nazi camp. Or even the author's refusal to ever use the word "Auschwitz," in an effort to "make this book about any camp, to add a universality to Bruno's experience."

That last is from an interview with the author that appears at the end of the audio version. I can't speak to most of what he said, because it was a lot of "here are all the places that are hyping my book," but the worst part of it, to me, was where he was addressing criticisms: "there are people who complain that Bruno is too innocent, too naive, and they are trivializing the message of this book." Um, no. I'm not trivializing the message; I'm objecting to his trivializing of the Holocaust. I find his treatment of the Holocaust to be superficial, misleading, and even offensive.

As an audio recording, I'm pretty neutral. The narrator did the best he could with the material and there was some differentiation between the characters' voices, but the music that was added... some chapters ended with appropriately-somber music. Other chapters had no music at all. Sometimes the music appeared in the middle of a chapter.

Two other incidental notes: first, normally you can't say anything negative about a Holocaust-themed book without being an asshole, because the books are so tied in with the Holocaust itself. In this case, though, I feel like, due to the fictionalizing of it, the book is far enough removed from Auschwitz that it's okay to be negative about the book without being insensitive about the Holocaust. Second, this doesn't land on my "run away! Save yourself!" shelf, because that's more for books that are comically bad--books that I can bash with glee and mock with abandon. I can't find anything funny about what makes this book so bad; it's just plain offensive and shallow. (less)

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Feb 10, 2011

Wayne rated it

· review of another edition

Recommended to Wayne by: I'm too kind to say

Shelves: books-i-ve-thrown-across-the-room, the-holocaust

I seriously suggest you read about what happened to real children in the Holocaust. It won't fill your thoughts for many days or shock you; rather it will fill your LIFE and make you feel sick to the core of your being.

Paul Friedlander, himself a survivor, recounts in his recent highly praised book the incident of 90 Jewish infants all under the age of five, orphaned after their parents were murdered in a mass shooting.
These children were subjected to indescribable mistreatment...more

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Feb 24, 2010

Madeline rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: assigned-reading, kids-and-young-adult, ugh, the-movie-is-better

As Michael Kors once sighed to a clueless designer on Project Runway: Where do I start?

Let's open with some descriptive words that sum up this book, and I will then go on to explain them in further detail: Patronizing. Insipid. Smarmy. Just plain bad.

Patronizing: I believe that to write good children's literature, you have to think that children are intelligent, capable human beings who are worth writing for - like Stephen King, who probably thinks kids are smarter than...more

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Dec 01, 2010

Arlene rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: read-2010

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is truly an amazing yet daunting novel that I will never forget. The author John Boyne did a masterful job of depicting the setting in such vivid detail and exposing the events in a manner that I felt a constant emotional pull as the story unfolded and impending doom lingered on the horizon.

I was recommended this novel a while back while reading The Book Thief, but after finishing that story and experiencing such deep sadness, I knew I couldn’t jump in...moreThe Boy in the Striped Pajamas is truly an amazing yet daunting novel that I will never forget. The author John Boyne did a masterful job of depicting the setting in such vivid detail and exposing the events in a manner that I felt a constant emotional pull as the story unfolded and impending doom lingered on the horizon.

I was recommended this novel a while back while reading The Book Thief, but after finishing that story and experiencing such deep sadness, I knew I couldn’t jump into another novel about the Holocaust for quite some time. I’m glad I waited because as with other works that cover this topic, distance and perspective is key. I feel the author did a grand job of juxtaposing two resounding themes in such a flawless manner; one being of the evil that was the Holocaust; against the second theme that of the innocence of a child.

I thought it was brilliant of Boyne to tell the story from the perspective of a nine year old German boy as you experience the events of this abominable and unthinkable time in history as a mere complicit bystander, which ultimately leaves you with a sense of hopelessness.

The story unfolds the day Bruno arrives home to discover his family is moving from Berlin to Auschwitz where his father will serve as a Commandant for the concentration camp. Bruno is forced to leave his three best friends for life and discovers that life in Auschwitz is lonely and desolate. All that changes the day he meets a boy his exact age and they begin to forge a friendship over the course of year. However, as much as he finds he and Schmuel have in common, living on opposite sides of the fence proves to have a devastating consequence to their friendship.

After completing this book, I did some research on the author and the novel and found that he not only received well deserved praise for this book, but also harsh criticism. As with any piece of literature, when words are committed to page and presented to an audience for their interpretation there will be varying degrees of acceptance and backlash. Couple that with such a sensitive topic and you’re bound to get a reaction. Well, my hats off to John Boyne for tackling a story through a unique perspective and presenting a poignant fable that as a reader I willingly suspended my reality and experienced the events in a way that exposed my emotions and feelings to such a raw level. Well done IMHO.(less)

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Feb 15, 2010

e.c.h.a rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Momo Ivashkov

Recommended to e.c.h.a by: Roos

Shelves: sejarah-budaya, milik-sendiri, fiksi-sejarah, persahabatan

SESAK DADA INI

Oh God, biarpun saya sudah tahu akhir kisah ini membaca kisah kehidupan Bruno tetap membuatku terpana, terenyuh, tersenyum dan tak bisa berkata banyak.

Bruno, memandang kehidupan dengan caranya sendiri - cara seorang anak memandang kehidupan yang sebenarnya tragis di tahun 40-an saat rezim Hitler berkuasa. Simpel di mata Bruno tapi menyesakan di mata saya.

Oh Bruno...kenapa? kenapa?

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Feb 17, 2008

Bill rated it

· review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Aaminah Amber, I don't think Anne Frank is a book you're meant to enjoy, just learn from.
Aug 11, 2010 03:26am

Brian Kotler I have to say that as a Jew who lost his marriage and children as a direct result of 3 weeks of being brainwashed blind Anti-Semitic hatred, I'm most ...moreI have to say that as a Jew who lost his marriage and children as a direct result of 3 weeks of being brainwashed blind Anti-Semitic hatred, I'm most insulted by your statement about how naive Bruno had to be. You said made it sound as if he should have known everything about the Holocaust at the age of 9.

But mind you, during the Holocaust Germany had a population of about 80,000,000 -- of which only 500,000 were Jewish. That is one per every 160 Germans. In the US, we number about 10 times that.

And there were many adults, even grandparents, that were clueless to the ravages that were taking place behind those electrified barbed wires. Or at the very least didn't care.

I first saw this movie and have since bought the book and will begin reading it to him. It's a more relatable story for male Tweens than The Diary of Anne Frank for a boy to begin learning about the way we were -- and to this day still are, even in churches.

My three children and I have suffered firsthand every for over two years, with no end in sight. And my ex-wife and her mother have denied it hundreds of times since. Heck, I can send you an email correspondence just a couple days again where religion is still a huge issue.

I guess that's what about 20 hours in a church that spouts hate will do to you. My 9-year old stepson yelled toward me, "Attack the Jew " while my ex called me a "Bad Jew" in front of all the children. I could go on with pages of examples worse than these. IN THREE WEEKS!!!! We were happily married for 6 years without ONE word about religion.

This is a very sensitive topic, especially for children just starting to learn about the topic, and I'm sorry that you so callously rejected a wonderful attempt to give young readers alternative methods to expose themselves to an EXTREMELY horrific piece of VERY recent history so as to never forget.

If you think there are places you want to be in the world today, watch a little YouTube and put yourself in the shoes of those innocent men, women, and children. Never in the history of the history of the world has there ever been mass murder, torture, starvation, and disease than what the 57th member of the Nazi Party, The Fury led.(less)
Jun 07, 2011 03:19pm

Nov 09, 2008

Cheryl Klein added it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: People who need a reason to stab their eyes out

Shelves: children-s

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS is The Book I Have Hated Most in My Adult Life -- or perhaps my whole life, as I don't remember hating any book this much as a child or teenager. I loathed the main character, I loathed the fact that the story to me had no point, and I especially loathed the author's air of self-satisfaction at having created "A Fable." I reviewed it on my blog a long time ago; go here for the full text, or read the main argument below. Seriously, if someone can explain t...moreTHE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS is The Book I Have Hated Most in My Adult Life -- or perhaps my whole life, as I don't remember hating any book this much as a child or teenager. I loathed the main character, I loathed the fact that the story to me had no point, and I especially loathed the author's air of self-satisfaction at having created "A Fable." I reviewed it on my blog a long time ago; go here for the full text, or read the main argument below. Seriously, if someone can explain to me why you saw this as a good book or how you understood its point, I'd appreciate it.

+++

I didn't like the main character, so I hated the story, and I didn't see the point Mr. Boyne was going after, so I felt he wasted my time. Throughout the book, Mr. Boyne can't decide how ignorant either his readers are or Bruno should be. Bruno knows at one point that there's a war going on, but later, when his sister Gretel moves pins around a map of Europe, he doesn't understand what she's doing. He has never heard of Hitler (whom he calls "The Fury"), nor of Jews. If the author had made him five or six rather than nine, then this might have been believable; as it is, it feels completely author-constructed and -manipulated, and it made me have zilch respect for Bruno -- or less than zilch, actually, as he's also a spoiled, selfish, ignorant brat. The author seems to like him, or at least think he's an okay kid doing the best he can, but when Bruno deliberately turns a blind eye to his "friend's" suffering and beatings . . . not okay! Who wants to hang out with a kid like that?

Boyne continues the ignorance game by keeping the name "Auschwitz" away from his readers with that "Out-with" -- a ploy I couldn't figure out, because if readers were approaching the story from the same ignorance as Bruno, they wouldn't have heard of Auschwitz, so it wouldn't matter if the name was included; and if readers knew anything about the Holocaust, they would see through it, and then it would come off as cutesy and evasive. The same is true of the ending: Without a knowledge of the Holocaust, readers would have had no idea Bruno went to the gas chamber, and therefore the story would have had no meaning for them. "He disappeared? Is that all?" If you have that knowlege, then I suppose you can recognize that Bruno has been punished for his ignorance, but without the main character grasping the message, the story is neither satisfying nor clear.

And is that even Boyne's point? According to a number of reviews, yes; they claim Bruno's deliberate ignorance is an allegory for the willful blindness of adult Germans during the War. Perhaps so, but in that case, Boyne should have shown us Bruno's death scene so readers understood the consequences of such ignorance, no matter their prior knowledge of the situation; and the message would have been infinitely more effective if the book were written in first person or Bruno was at least respectable (if not likeable), so I gave a damn when he died. The musical "Cabaret" focuses on that same willful ignorance, but the moral power of the show arises from the audience's awareness of that ignorance throughout the debauchery onstage, and its creators' final condemnation of that ignorance and display of its effects in the last scene of the show. If this is Boyne's point also, he's removed all the teeth from it. And if it's not, then, as Roger Sutton said in his Horn Book review -- "If Auschwitz is the metaphor, what's the real story?"(less)

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Jul 31, 2010

cindy rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: about-living, europian, indonesian

Harus saya akui bahwa sebelum mulai membaca buku ini, saya sudah memiliki bayangan tentang isinya, bahwa ini bukan dongeng anak-anak, ini kisah kamp konsentrasi. Oke, bukan masalah, meskipun belum pernah benar-benar membaca kisah kekejaman Der Fuhrer dalam bentuk buku, saya sudah melihat beberapa film tentang ini, Schlinder's List (hiii...masih merinding mengingatnya), La Vita e Bella (yang kocak tp tragis) dan The Pianist (yang sangat menyentuh hati).

Pertama memegang bukunya, kesan...moreHarus saya akui bahwa sebelum mulai membaca buku ini, saya sudah memiliki bayangan tentang isinya, bahwa ini bukan dongeng anak-anak, ini kisah kamp konsentrasi. Oke, bukan masalah, meskipun belum pernah benar-benar membaca kisah kekejaman Der Fuhrer dalam bentuk buku, saya sudah melihat beberapa film tentang ini, Schlinder's List (hiii...masih merinding mengingatnya), La Vita e Bella (yang kocak tp tragis) dan The Pianist (yang sangat menyentuh hati).

Pertama memegang bukunya, kesan yang saya dapat adalah, cukup tipis, tidak setebal sangkaan saya semula. Sampulnya yang bergaris-garis biru pucat-abu-abu (sesuai dengan judulnya), langsung menangkap ingatan saya tentang seragam para tawanan di film-film yang pernah saya lihat. Yang lebih menggelitik adalah sinopsisnya di sampul belakang.
... Dan cepat atau lambat, Anda akan tiba di sebuah pagar, bersama Bruno...
Hhmmpphhh.....

Saya tidak berharap banyak dari buku ini, tapi saya mendapatkan lebih. Jauh melebihi ekspektasi saya.

Buku ini mengambil sudut pandang yang sangat tidak lazim. Kisah kesengsaraan dilihat dari mata seorang bocah. Bukan bocah yang mengalaminya, tapi bocah lain yang seumur dengannya, berada di dekatnya, tapi sangat sedikit bersentuhan dengannya. Bermain bersamanya tapi selalu berada di dua sisi pagar nasib yang berbeda. Bahkan ayah bocah inilah yang sedikit banyak bertanggung jawab akan kesengsaraan sekian ribu jiwa di halaman sebelah.

Kenaifan yang murni berasal dari ketidaktahuan ini yang memungkinkan terjalinnya persahabatan aneh antara kedua bocah tersebut. Ketiadaan rasa marah ataupun sombong, absennya patriotisme dalam arti sempit, ideologi ataupun kesadaran akan kebangsaan, menciutkan rasa curiga dan membuahkan jalinan kepercayaan kanak-kanak yang melampaui batas-batas peperangan.

Jika ini semua berujung pada pilihan yang dilakukan Bruno di pagar itu, apakah kita harus menilainya sebagai kebodohan fatal seorang yang tak tahu apa-apa, ataukah ini adalah sebuah pelajaran berharga (pahit memang, tapi sangat berharga) yang ditujukan pada orang-orang dewasa yang merasa tahu semuanya.

Akhir kisah yang dituturkan sangat pendek dari klimaksnya, justru membuat buku ini sangat berkesan. Bahkan setelah buku ditutup, gaung rasa sesalnya masih terngiang-ngiang dalam benak.

****

A pure naivete which come from cognisances, made it possible for those two children to tangled an outlandish friendship. The absence of anger nor arrogance, ignorance of narrow patriotism, ideology or nationalism, diminished any suspicion that may arose and gave away for childish trust which went beyond the boundaries of war.

If all of these ended in a choice which Bruno took in that fence, must we judged it as a fatal stupidity from someone who knew nothing, or should we took it as valuable lesson (bitter as it was, still priceless as it is), a lesson for all adults who felt to know everything.

The ending which recite very shortly from its climax, made the impression even harder. In fact, after the book has closed, the rue still lingers in readers' mind. (less)

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Nov 26, 2009

Al Bità rated it

· review of another edition

There is nothing to learn from this book. There is much to dislike. From certain perspectives, it can even be said to be detestable.

First of all, there is the authorial conceit that the work is written from the perspective of a child. The worst example of this come in the use of euphemisms for the Fuhrer ('the Fury') and for Auschwitz ('Out With') which become increasingly irritating as the work progresses. Bruno's 'difficulty' with these words is somehow supposed to charm us, an...moreThere is nothing to learn from this book. There is much to dislike. From certain perspectives, it can even be said to be detestable.

First of all, there is the authorial conceit that the work is written from the perspective of a child. The worst example of this come in the use of euphemisms for the Fuhrer ('the Fury') and for Auschwitz ('Out With') which become increasingly irritating as the work progresses. Bruno's 'difficulty' with these words is somehow supposed to charm us, and apparently gives the reader 'in the know' a soft, patronising glow which is presumably there to create a certain kind of sympathy for Bruno. It is interesting to note that Bruno apparently had no difficulty with the Boy in the Striped Pyjamas's name of Schmuel (maybe he could have referred to him as the 'mule'?). The same tweeness is in the description of the prison garb as 'striped pyjamas', ahtough that is less irritating. It is really pushing the envelope to assume that Bruno is as naive as depicted. At age 8/9 he would have been in school, and subject to the indoctrination of the Hitler Youth; and he certainly would have been fully aware of not only Hitler, but how to pronounce Fuhrer!

Indeed, it is this apparent ignorance of even the most basic things about Hitler's Germany, and it's attitude to Jews, that would have been brainwashed into the minds of German Youth, that is hardest to come to grips with. The author's 'childlike' writing permits him to draw several obscuring veils over the whole question. Even at the end, as Bruno and Schmuel go hand in hand into the 'darkness' and 'disappear' there is really nothing to indicate what happened to them. A child reading this, without any awareness of the horrors of Auschwitz, could be forgiven for believing simply that they 'disappeared' into some mysterious unknown. Thus despite its cutesy language, the book is obviously intended to be read by adults who presumably DO know what happened to them; and that fact alone makes the writing condescending and patronising to say the least.

Since the reader is presumed to know these things, they will also know that the situation described in the book could never have happened. There is sufficient doubt whether any 8/9 year-old child would have ever survived past the first few hours at Auschwitz, except as possible 'medical experiment' subjects; it is hard to believe that Schmuel could have consistently been able to meet Bruno for the period of a whole year without being discovered and dealt with; and in any case, would he really have had access to a depot where other 'striped pyjamas of Brunos' size were stored?... And, by the way, isn't it lucky that Schmuel speaks German. Had he been from some other country and spoken a different language, who knows how the story might have gone?

These are just some of the many irritations to be found in the book. The author has tried to justify it by arguing that the story is a fable, and that these things don't matter. But if it is a fable, then fables usually teach a moral of some kind. What is the moral in this story? Don't trust in the friendship of Jews? Innocence and ignorance is no protection for awful things to happen to you? The fact that people feel saddened by the ending, or even shocked by it, is even more repellent: the sadness seems to be reserved for poor, innocent, ignorant Bruno, who goes to his death still innocent, and still ignorant. Because of the 'hiding' of the reality of the Auschwitz atrocities, the whole situation regarding Schmuel and the other victims seems to disappear, just as Schmuel and Bruno do. Sad, isn't it?

I cannot help but feel deep repulsion towards this 'fable'. That such a deeply offensive approach is somehow apparently easily disregarded because of a twee authorial trick of using sweet, sugary language, and helps make it such a popular, 'safe' book (no nasties crawling about here!) makes me despair at the dulling of any critical facilities or acumnen on behalf of the public who love it. The book is inane, badly written, historically inaccurate, lacking in any sense of moral teaching (no one in the book 'learns' anything, or even changes their attitude to anything) and is hardly inspiring. It is banal.
(less)

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Feb 11, 2008

J-Lynn rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: I'm not sure

Shelves: historical-fiction, young-adult-and-adolescent-lit, nyra-2009-books, jewish-kid-and-ya-lit, childrens-lit-chapter-books

I finished this book yesterday and I am still having trouble forming an opinion--but here it goes. I have thought about it a lot which is generally a sign of good writing, but in this case, maybe I am thinking about it because the book disturbed me.

If I look at the Holocaust historical fiction genre as a whole, I am not sure what this book adds to the group. It does show another point of view, from the child of the Commandant of Auschwitz, but Bruno is so terrifically dense--naive ...moreI finished this book yesterday and I am still having trouble forming an opinion--but here it goes. I have thought about it a lot which is generally a sign of good writing, but in this case, maybe I am thinking about it because the book disturbed me.

If I look at the Holocaust historical fiction genre as a whole, I am not sure what this book adds to the group. It does show another point of view, from the child of the Commandant of Auschwitz, but Bruno is so terrifically dense--naive well beyond his nine years--that I am not sure what the point is. Bruno talks to his Jewish friend on the other side of the fence for over a year--he lives in his house which also serves as the headquarters of Auschwitz for over a year--and I am supposed to believe that he doesn't have any clue what is going on in the camp? I know children are narcissistic and self involved, but this book takes that idea to a whole other level. Bruno's tunnel vision is so great that I keep wondering if maybe that it was some sort of message that the author was trying to get across. Maybe that kids can create and live in an alternate reality as long as they need to? Was that the point?

If not, what was the point? Surely it wasn't the shocking ending that served little in adding to the greater story of the Holocaust. The ending served no purpose. It didn't make the father see what was wrong, it didn't make the guards question what they were doing, it didn't make the Jews who died in the camp any less tragic, what was the ending's purpose? My guess is just shock value.

I do think the book makes an excellent argument for being honest with children in even the worst circumstances. By trying to protect kids and shield kids, adults put them in greater danger!

I will say one positive thing, I thought the non-traditional book jacket was a good marketing ploy. By not giving away any of the plot points, it makes the reader intrigued. But, overall, I am flummoxed. The book is an enigma which, possibly, is better left unsolved.(less)

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Nov 08, 2008

Elizabeth rated it

· review of another edition

I'll give it this much. Few books have caused me to actually shake SHAKE in anger. Wow. I think I need to go boil my eyeballs for a while. What was the author thinking?

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Dec 12, 2008

Endah rated it

· review of another edition

Kesalahan pertama saya dalam membaca buku ini adalah mengira bahwa buku ini sebuah buku cerita anak-anak yang lucu dan jenaka. Asumsi ini saya tafsirkan dari judulnya : Anak Lelaki Berpiama Garis-Garis. Terdengar lucu dan riang. Kesalahan kedua, saya, seperti biasa, melewatkan membaca sinopsisnya yang tercantum di sampul belakang buku. Seandainya saya mau menyempatkan diri membacanya terlebih dahulu, barangkali saya tak akan terkecoh.

Terkecoh? Ya, sebab kiranya buku tipis deng...more

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Jan 25, 2009

Dianne Ascroft rated it

Recommends it for: anyone interested in historical fiction

I decided to read this book because a friend told me that, in some respects, it reminded her of my novel, ‘Hitler and Mars Bars’. So I wanted to find out what she meant. The most obvious similarity is that the main character in each book is a German boy who is caught up in the events of the Second World War.
Both books are simply written but effective and moving. Unlike my own book, Boyne’s novel is completely unadorned. Yet it also captures the character’s emotions and the situation ...moreI decided to read this book because a friend told me that, in some respects, it reminded her of my novel, ‘Hitler and Mars Bars’. So I wanted to find out what she meant. The most obvious similarity is that the main character in each book is a German boy who is caught up in the events of the Second World War.
Both books are simply written but effective and moving. Unlike my own book, Boyne’s novel is completely unadorned. Yet it also captures the character’s emotions and the situation he finds himself in. Even though the reading level is elementary, the narration draws you into the story. It doesn’t need to be more complex because, with few words plainly written, he makes you care what happens to the characters.
Some reviewers have criticised Boyne’s main character, Bruno, saying he is too naïve for his age. Bruno may be an exaggeration of a sheltered, middle class child or he may be typical of a child raised in a more innocent era. But, either way, his naivety and his responses to events add poignancy to the story. His guileless viewpoint presents the concentration camp, where the story is set, in a stark manner.
In my book, my main character, Erich, develops a greater awareness of the world around him than Bruno does but the story is told over a longer period. Bruno doesn’t have a chance to learn and grow.
Even though Bruno is young and naïve, he develops a strong, caring friendship with Shmuel, a boy in the concentration camp. Friendship and human bonds are the book’s central theme. Unnecessary details are pared away so that the friendship and interaction between the two boys stands out.
What struck me most about The Boy In The Striped Pajamas is the powerful ending. I was not expecting the turn the story took and was shocked when I reached the end. Usually I don’t like sad or disturbing endings and maybe that’s why my novel ends on a hopeful note. But such a raw, horrific ending was the best one for this story. This book will make you stop and think. It is a completely different angle from which to view the Second World War and Boyne has done it well.
(less)

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Jun 06, 2008

Milan/zzz rated it

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Shelves: 2008-read

Well this is book for Young Adults and therefore I must admit that the style was a little bit problematic for me. I guess because I'm only an "adult". It's very simple, very on the level of the main character but after a while I get used to it and I might say that this naiveness was even charming. Big part of the book is like as if we are waiting something (big) to happens, the main thing but I wouldn't say the book is boring; again it was charming.
I usually find myself very irri...more

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Jun 05, 2009

Bibliophile rated it

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Shelves: 2009, fiction, germany, historical-fiction, ww2

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is a Holocaust “fable” by the Irish writer John Boyne, in which a nine-year-old German boy named Bruno arrives at Auschwitz (or as the novel coyly and annoyingly calls it “Out-With”) when his father is named as the camp’s new commandant. Bruno is incredibly naïve (to the point where I began to wonder whether he might not be mentally retarded, in which case he would most likely have been murdered under the Nazi euthanasia program long before the timeline of the boo...moreThe Boy in the Striped Pajamas is a Holocaust “fable” by the Irish writer John Boyne, in which a nine-year-old German boy named Bruno arrives at Auschwitz (or as the novel coyly and annoyingly calls it “Out-With”) when his father is named as the camp’s new commandant. Bruno is incredibly naïve (to the point where I began to wonder whether he might not be mentally retarded, in which case he would most likely have been murdered under the Nazi euthanasia program long before the timeline of the book, thus sparing us this novel!) and thinks that the men in the striped pajamas whom he can see from his upstairs window are all on vacation, until he meets another boy (in the striped pajamas) named Schmuel and befriends him.

Apparently, calling this book a “fable” precluded any attempt at historical accuracy or psychological acuity on the author’s part. First, the premise that a nine-year-old boy in Nazi Germany wouldn’t know who the Führer was or what Heil Hitler meant is absolutely ludicrous (as is his ridiculous “mishearing” of Führer as “Fury”, which only works in English and not in German, where the word for "fury" is "Zorn" or "Wut"!) Bruno, at nine, is one year shy of mandatory membership in the Hitler-Jugend, and his sister Gretel, at 12, would have been in the BDM for the previous TWO years and moreover the children of a high-ranking SS officer would absolutely have known who Hitler was and not mixed up his name. So that gave me pause from about page 5 on. Bruno would be marginally more believable as a four- or five-year-old but then John Boyne wouldn’t have been able to give him a Jewish counterpart. Even though there were some – VERY FEW! – little children who managed to survive Auschwitz, the chances that a five-year-old would have done so would be much smaller than even a nine-year-old’s capacity to survive the initial selections and the work that was meant to slowly kill the inmates.

Then add in all the other implausibilities such as not Bruno's not knowing what “Jews” were or even the word "Jew", when Bruno would have been assaulted by propaganda against Jewish people virtually since his birth in 1934! Apparently, Bruno also doesn’t know what an air-raid is, even though he’s lived through them. REALLY? Then there is the part where the fence at Auschwitz is not only not electrified, and doesn’t have guards and guarddogs, but even has a hole at the bottom. PLEASE! People didn’t wander in and out of Auschwitz at will, or it would have been a very different place! Boyne’s Nazis read like Colonel Klink in terms of their planning, not like the highly efficient mass-murderers they were. And let’s not get started on how Schmuel apparently has the ability to mysteriously vanish from the constant Appells and the backbreaking labor that’s probably the only reason he’s still alive. And more trivially, Bruno wouldn't be reading Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island - he'd be much more likely to be reading Karl May!

All of my criticisms make me think that Boyne did absolutely no research on German history, the German language, Nazis, the Holocaust or Auschwitz, and I'm beyond irritated to find out that this book is being touted as "the new Diary of Anne Frank" and indeed, replacing that work for kids in some schools. This book trivializes the Holocaust and the murder of millions by turning these things into a feeble allegory about the universality of ethnic hatred and positing that all we really need are two boys who can crawl under the fences to each other. Blech! I don’t understand why Boyne chose the Holocaust as its setting, as the novel says nothing meaningful about the Holocaust at all, its maudlin chocolate-box sentimentality (UGH, THE ENDING!) and simplistic narration in fact undercut the idea that Germans were willfully blind to what was being done in their name. Bruno’s not just ignorant; he’s actually stupid. Perhaps the story would have worked from the perspective of, say, Bruno’s mother, and her blindness to what her husband was doing because his work assured them of a comfortable existence. But then again, I’m not sure anything could have saved this pretentious twaddle!

Save your money and buy the non-fiction The Diary of Anne Frank or Night by Elie Wiesel, or if you’re set on a fictional tale about the Holocaust, then choose The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, which is a hell of a lot more believable even if it is narrated by Death himself!
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Feb 23, 2009

K.B.L. rated it

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In the jacket summary, the author claims that the book is not for children, (and yet it is found in the children/young adult section) and that the book is meant to teach adults something. Then he states that he "didn't want to tell what the book was about because it would spoil it"--thus there *is* no actual summary...
But by the third chapter, I wondered just how stupid he thought that the readers were. Word usage, such as where they move being "Out With" and "Fury"...more

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May 03, 2008

Jennifer Wardrip rated it

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Shelves: trt-posted-reviews, trt-gold-star-award-winner

Reviewed by Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky" for TeensReadToo.com

What an incredible story! John Boyne has created innocent, naïve Bruno and given him a powerful story to tell. This moving book should be required reading for everyone.

Set in the 1940's in Berlin, Germany, the story centers around a nine-year-old German boy named Bruno. His family leaves Berlin to move to the country because his father has been reassigned by the "Fury." Bruno's youth and...more

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May 16, 2008

Lorraine rated it

· review of another edition

Recommended to Lorraine by: Lesley

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I like that this book is written from the perspective of the Commandant’s young son who doesn’t have any idea of the world he’s living in and the role his father has in it. We get to know Bruno as a sweet, well-behaved boy but who also has the self-centred and competitive nature that any child of a young age has.

When he and his family are uprooted from their Berlin home and moved to Poland so his father can oversee a concentration camp, Bruno has to come to terms with the fact that...moreI like that this book is written from the perspective of the Commandant’s young son who doesn’t have any idea of the world he’s living in and the role his father has in it. We get to know Bruno as a sweet, well-behaved boy but who also has the self-centred and competitive nature that any child of a young age has.

When he and his family are uprooted from their Berlin home and moved to Poland so his father can oversee a concentration camp, Bruno has to come to terms with the fact that he is miles away from everything and everybody he knows. On his first day he looks out his bedroom window and is shocked to see so many people on the other side of the fence, all wearing striped pyjamas. There are so many questions for Bruno to ask, but when he does, he never gets a full answer. I don’t think anybody feels they can talk freely about the situation, and how do you explain something so incomprehensible to an 8 year old innocent?

Bruno considers himself to be a bit of an explorer but it is months before he even gets as far as visiting the bench that faces the house in the garden. When he does head further afield and meets Shmuel, he finds a ‘friend for life’ who he has so much in common with… same age, birthday, families who love them, friends at a home which they have been forced to leave behind … the only difference between them is the side of the fence they sit on.

On the face of it, Bruno lives in ignorant bliss of what surrounds him but with all that he’s seen… The Fury’s visit to his house in Berlin, his Grandmother’s argument with his Father, Kotler’s treatment of the people in the striped pyjama’s, Pavel’s admission that he’s not really a waiter and Shmuel’s family going ‘missing’.. I think he begins to realise. Why else did he take so long to go exploring? Also, when Shmuel mutter’s “you don’t know what it’s like here” Bruno is “pretending he hadn’t heard that because then he wouldn’t have to answer”.

This book is an easy and simple book to read, it is heart-warming and very sad. It never details what is happening, always just hinting at it, but you get to know so many characters and how each of them have been affected by the situations they’ve been put in. Bruno’s grandmother can’t forgive her son, Bruno’s father juggles family life with his responsibilities, Bruno’s mother succumbs to alcohol (and a possible affair with a younger man), Bruno’s sister enters her teenage years, Kotler tries to hide his past (was his father jewish?) and further his career, Pavel still holds on to his kindness and humanity in a place where he gets treated so inhumanely, and Shmuel tries to understand what’s going on, just like Bruno.
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Mar 29, 2009

Putri rated it

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Shelves: young-adult-fiction, movie-tie-in

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Apr 28, 2009

Lucy rated it

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Written in the voice of Bruno, a nine year-old boy whose father is promoted up the Nazi chain of command and given the position as director of Auschwitz, a Polish concentration camp, The Boy In The Striped Pajamas exposes the well-documented horrors of gas chambers, crematoriums, savage beatings and starvation through eyes that have no comprehension of this kind of evil. Instead, when he meets Schmel, a Jewish boy his own age sitting on the other side of a fence, he sees a potential playmate wh...more

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Oct 25, 2008

timoen rated it

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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Oct 06, 2008

Tawnie rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult

Grades: 9 to 12 Genre: Historical Fiction
While Bruno has enjoyed growing up in Berlin, his father has been transfer to “out-with” and they all must move. His new home is out in the country, but there is a strange giant fence in his backyard where there are lots of people in strange striped pajamas. One day when walking along the fence, Bruno meets Shumel who sits on the other side of the fence. The two boys share the same birthday and a friendship is formed. Each day Bruno sneaks off t...more

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Sep 07, 2008

Tyas rated it

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Shelves: general-fiction

Bruno’s life in Berlin was happy. Not quite perfect, but happy. His family owned a big house, he had best friends, and his father was an important person, wearing a gorgeous uniform with shiny medals on front. And their leader, The Fury (Bruno could never pronounce his name correctly), regarded his father so highly that he appointed him to a great task: taking charge of a place named ‘Out-With’ (again, Bruno could not pronounce it appropriately, no matter how his family taught him the correct...moreBruno’s life in Berlin was happy. Not quite perfect, but happy. His family owned a big house, he had best friends, and his father was an important person, wearing a gorgeous uniform with shiny medals on front. And their leader, The Fury (Bruno could never pronounce his name correctly), regarded his father so highly that he appointed him to a great task: taking charge of a place named ‘Out-With’ (again, Bruno could not pronounce it appropriately, no matter how his family taught him the correct pronounciation). But Bruno hates Out-With. There’s nothing there, except sickening soldiers and strange people across the fence, wearing striped pyjamas all the time, looking miserable all the time also.

This is a tale of one of the most tragic mistakes in the modern times, told from the innocent eyes of a nine-year old German Boy who knew nothing about what was really happening. He made friends with Shmuel, a boy in the striped pyjamas, who didn’t really understand anything either except that he and his family were forcibly taken to Out-With, stripped of anything they had ever had. Their friendship grew, and although not a single violence is portrayed blatantly, we could feel the horror exactly because they were missing from the account, of Bruno’s reluctance to remember or talk about them. (And witness how subtle Boyne shows us that Bruno’s mother was having an affair with the disgusting Lieutenant Kotler.)

Unfortunately, the last few sentences somehow enraged me so, and altered my overall enjoyment in reading the book. Probably Boyne trying to tell people “We’re not going to do it again, right?”, but to me by telling that the same thing wouldn’t happen again in the present times, it’s as if Boyne negating that there are millions people out there still suffering from discrimination, genocide, and other ill-treatments on a scale not less gargantuan than what had been inscribed to our history in the first half of the 20th century.

Well, probably not where you live, Mr Boyne, not where you live. But remember: it’s not even 20 years since Europe and the world had to witness the atrocities of the Balkan wars, where men were slain and women were raped for no more reason than that they were different. And look at Sudan now. Look at Iraq now. Look at Palestine now, where people are living divided, contained by walls even longer than the Berlin Wall had been, robbed off their lands and properties and even their loved ones. Just because they’re different. What is so different about it and the occupation of Poland by Germany? What would you call it?

WHAT WOULD YOU CALL IT?

People are dying, Mr Boyne, not exactly like what happened to Shmuel and his people, but they are dying nevertheless, and to me it’s naive if not stupid to end your story by stating that it doesn’t happen anymore in these times. I’m sorry, Mr Boyne, probably you hadn’t meant what I managed to read from your otherwise beautiful work, but you should have chosen wiser closing sentences.
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Aug 19, 2008

Beth rated it

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Shelves: ya-lit, audio, want-to-teach

I would love to teach this book in my literature class in pairing with studying WWII in social studies. This is the story of Bruno, a naive, 9-year-old boy whose father is a high-ranking Nazi commander at Auschwitz. Bruno befriends a boy on the other side of the fence, but he never understands why they can't play together. While this book is not meant to be historically accurate, it still can incite wonderful discussion in a classroom full of older students. No one would ever anticipate the wa...more

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Jun 21, 2008

Ceci rated it

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Recommends it for: all who want to learn more about themselves

I think this is a wonderful book. The naivety and simplicity of the protagonist which affects the story as well is a narrative gimmick... and it works well, throwing the horrors of the holocaust into stark contrast. It's a dark adult fable, and I dare say that an adult reader will get more of it than an adolescent. At times, the narrative is almost like poetry, with the many ellipses and phrases that are repeated over and over again.

I also believe that this is an important book for...more

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Ginny What's wrong with The Little Prince??? I loved that book! I had to read it for French Lit in college--in French! It was challenging, but exhilarati...more
Jun 25, 2008 06:42am

Ruth Mcdermott Hi there

I noticed you have some strong views about The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, which makes you an ideal person for me to ask if you wo...more
Feb 05, 2010 09:38am

Tonner This is quite interesting how you put this, a lot I see on here is basically saying he's too naive. I thought this somewhat, but I don't think it did,...more
Sep 07, 2010 05:27pm

Jun 30, 2008

Kelley rated it

· review of another edition

I realize that I keep changing my rating and comments on this book, but I really can't decide how I feel about it. If you do decide to read this book, I suggest also reading the interview with the author found at the end of the book- it adds some new insight.

I've lost sleep over this book the last few nights, listening to my mind's self battle as it bounces back and forth between thoughts and opinions. (I've obviously found the book to be very thought-provoking if I'm still losing ...moreI realize that I keep changing my rating and comments on this book, but I really can't decide how I feel about it. If you do decide to read this book, I suggest also reading the interview with the author found at the end of the book- it adds some new insight.

I've lost sleep over this book the last few nights, listening to my mind's self battle as it bounces back and forth between thoughts and opinions. (I've obviously found the book to be very thought-provoking if I'm still losing sleep over it.) I've read a lot of historical fiction books about WWII, but never from the viewpoint of the son a gestapo agent. The ending of the book has especially raised questions in my mind.

While the ending of the book was thought-provoking and somewhat startling, I found the these things in the book to be unrealistic:

#1- I struggled to believe that the main character could possibly be as naive as he was portrayed. I have a seven year old who, in every way, would have asked a million and twenty+ questions and seen the situation for what it was if he had grown up right next to "Out-With." Me simply giving him pat answers would not have sufficed.

The author taking the stance he did made a little more sense to me when my friend explained her mom's viewpoint that children who lived during the the 1940's did not ask as many questions as children do now days. For the most part, they accepted what was told to them from the adults they knew. She explained that this is how it was in her generation, and that the WWII era was even another generation back. This makes sense to me and I tell myself that there is a possibility that a child could be that naive, esp if his parents were trying to shield him from the war. So now I try not to compare all characters I read about with my own 7 year old.

However, that being said, I still have the following questions in my mind:

#2- Did Bruno's father loathe himself or know what he was doing is wrong and try to shield it from his son? I know that Bruno's grandmother didn't agree with what the Nazi Regime was doing and suspect that his mother wasn't a whole-hearted supporter either.

From what I have read about the indoctrination that was so prevalent in Germany at the time of WWII, I had to question the validity of a little boy whose father not only works for the Gestapo but is the head of Auschwitz, not knowing anything about what Hitler and his followers cunningly indoctrinated many of the German people with. Because of his father's job, it would have make more sense to me if Bruno had grown up in an environment where he was taught to hate Jews, where he was prepared to enter into the Hitler Youth Program, etc. even if his family was moved to Poland for a short time.

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Dec 19, 2008

Annalisa rated it

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Shelves: historical-fiction

What I really enjoyed about this book was the innocent voice of the narrator. When you're going to approach such a widely written about topic, you have to pick a new angle with which to tell your story. John Boyne told the story from the perspective of a small boy who doesn't understand his surroundings: that his dad is not the hero, what is happening all around him, that he should be afraid. I liked the idea of seeing something we understand through the ideas of someone who doesn't.

...moreWhat I really enjoyed about this book was the innocent voice of the narrator. When you're going to approach such a widely written about topic, you have to pick a new angle with which to tell your story. John Boyne told the story from the perspective of a small boy who doesn't understand his surroundings: that his dad is not the hero, what is happening all around him, that he should be afraid. I liked the idea of seeing something we understand through the ideas of someone who doesn't.

But while the Holocaust is a subject not easy to wrap your mind around for an adult much less a child, a normal child would understand that something was wrong. This boy was so innocent he seemed more along the lines of a Kindergartener than a 9- and then 10-year-old boy. I kept picturing a very small child. Even as time progressed he was as clueless to his surroundings as he was in the beginning. He wasn't learning and growing. So why didn't Boyne make his narrator younger if he were going to making him so naive? Maybe he thought 10 a good age to still be innocent but not too young to get caught up in tragedy? I tried not to be picky about the fact that this German boy was saying out-with which is English because I suppose an English-speaking child reading the story wouldn't notice the discrepancy.

I did have some confusion about the book's intended audience. I loved the blurb on the jacket that said it wouldn't tell us what the book was about, in fact it may have been my favorite part of the book, and in there it said the book is not for 9-year olds. Yes I concur with that statement, but what age is appropriate? It seems the book is best read by someone who already understands the meaning of what Bruno does not, but at that point one would be too old for the book to truly affect you in the way Boyne intended. Maybe the naivete is a way to introduce youth to the Holocaust without being explicit and that was Boyne's intention. But I'm not sure what a young adult would understand from the book, particularly all the events wrapping up the story, or if the subject matter would be too much. I can't figure out an ideal age to read this story.

For me, I love all things Holocaust and am a sucker for any story about its tragedy. So I liked the book, but I can also see how some people would be bothered by the story. You have to know this isn't a happy one, even if you do tell it through the eyes of a child who is lighthearted. I liked how your idea of what the title means shifts throughout the book; food for thought that discrimination affects us all. I also liked the thought that when we build fences to keep people out, we set boundaries on our own lives. I think the last statement in the book is intended to be sarcastic: that this wouldn't happen in the world today. At least I hope it is because genocide is constantly going on, but would the intended audience understand that or grab hold of false hope? I think Boyne is making a statement that we need to learn for the past and prevent such cruelty and hatred in all circumstances. In the end, the book has left me thinking, still processing the characters, and I love that in a book. It's a book I would love to discuss, that almost needs discussion.(less)

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Feb 19, 2008

Chrissie Willicombe rated it

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Recommends it for: Lovers of children's literature, teachers who are doing WWII as a project

Shelves: children-s-books

I've just finished reading The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and although I think there were some flaws in the story, I think it's important to remember that this novel is essentially for children. Flaws include Bruno's incredible naivety about things going on around him...what a Jew was, who the Fuhrer was or the meaning of German words (being from Nazi Germany one would think he would have known these things at 9 years old). I personally could never understand either why Shmuel didn't escape un...more

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Jul 17, 2008

Roos rated it

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Recommends it for: Dahlia

Shelves: novelia

"Duh Bruno...dimana kau nak?"

Bener-bener tidak akan menyangka akan berakhir seperti ini...membaca buku ini diawali dengan dialog-dialog yang polos khas anak-anak antara Bruno dengan Ibunya, kakaknya Gretel dan Ayahnya, dan orang-orang di Outwith. Bruno Sang Penjelajah awalnya tidak begitu suka waktu mereka sekeluarga dibawa pindah dari Rumah di Berlin ke Rumah di Outwith...dia selalu protes pada semua orang yang ditemuinya...tapi akhirnya...dia menemukan teman yang mau mend...more

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Sep 22, 2007

nisa felicia faridz rated it

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Shelves: whatsinmywoodenshelves

copied from my friendster's blogs (title: the boy in the striped pyjamas):
-----------------------------------------------------------
note: i read the indonesian translation one.

Bukan buku yang tebal dan bahasanya pun sederhana sekali. Sehingga tidak perlu berhari-hari untuk menamatkan buku dengan cover yang cukup baik tersebut (terima kasih Gramedia yang menerbitkan edisi Indonesia dengan mementingkan estetika cover buku :)). Isi ceritanya juga bukan sesuatu yang kompleks...morecopied from my friendster's blogs (title: the boy in the striped pyjamas):
-----------------------------------------------------------
note: i read the indonesian translation one.

Bukan buku yang tebal dan bahasanya pun sederhana sekali. Sehingga tidak perlu berhari-hari untuk menamatkan buku dengan cover yang cukup baik tersebut (terima kasih Gramedia yang menerbitkan edisi Indonesia dengan mementingkan estetika cover buku :)). Isi ceritanya juga bukan sesuatu yang kompleks, walaupun setting dan periode kejadian tersebut berada pada kondisi sosial politik yang kompleks (it’s complicated, kalau kata friendster..lengkap dengan TM).
Tentang seorang anak laki-laki normal, Bruno, berumur sembilan tahun yang secara natural bete sama kelakuan kakak perempuannya yang mulai puber, dan cinta dan bangga sekali dengan ayahnya. Kebanggaan pada ayahnya yang seorang komandan penting, yang gagah dengan seragam berlogo swastika (dan tentunya anak ini tidak pernah tahu apa makna logo tersebut). Seorang ayah yang bekerja sepenuh jiwa raga demi puncak karier militernya.
Jiwa petualang Bruno membawanya kepada persahabatan dengan seorang anak lelaki sebayanya, Shmuel, yang lahir pada hari bulan dan tahun yang sama dengannya, mempunyai ukuran tubuh yang sama namun lebih kurus dari Bruno, dan bedanya lagi, anak ini selalu mengenakan ‘piyama’ garis-garis (yang sebenarnya adalah seragam untuk kaum yahudi yang berada di kamp Aucshwitz).
Bab demi bab menceritakan kehidupan keluarga sang komandan dan juga persahabatan dari sudut pandang anak sembilan tahun yang naïf dan … kadang menyebalkan. Misalnya ketika Bruno terus-terusan mengeluh tidak adil karena Shmuel punya banyak kawan yang tinggal bersamanya sementara dirinya harus tinggal bersama kakak perempuannya yang sinis dan menyebalkan. Seandainya Bruno mengerti… saya sendiri tidak yakin, apakah seharusnya anak sembilan tahun seperti mereka mengerti apa yang terjadi di sana saat itu?
Tidak seperti persahabatan Bruno sebelumnya dengan kawan-kawannya di Berlin, selama setahun yang mereka dapat lakukan hanyalah duduk bercakap-cakap di bawah pohon dengan sebaris pagar kawat tinggi memisahkan mereka. Sampai suatu ketika naluri petualangnya membawa Bruno lebih jauh, menerobos pagar yang memisahkan dirinya (yang adalah ras unggulan, menurut Der Fuhrer) dengan kelompok tawanan yahudi. Usaha itu disempurnakan oleh piyama garis-garis yang dibawakan Shmuel untuk dikenakan Bruno demi penyamarannya di ‘balik pagar’. Dan ZAP! Jadilah ia bagian dari kaum ‘terhina’ itu.
“... sulit sekali membedakan mereka berdua. Rasanya seakan … mereka semua sebenarnya sama …” begitu kata Shmuel (Hmm, kenapa semakin dewasa kita justru makin jauh dari kebijaksanaan anak-anak ya?).
Pheew… Saya menghela nafas dalam-dalam ketika Bruno yang berada di barisan ‘piyama garis-garis’, diantara tembakan-tembakan dan teriakan tentara-tentara nazi, berharap agar ayahnya segera datang dan menghalau anak buah-anak buah ayahnya tersebut yang tidak berhenti-berhenti menyakiti mereka. Kabar terakhir yang diceritakan tentang Bruno adalah ia, Shmuel dan ratusan orang berpiyama garis-garis lainnya masuk ke dalam ‘ruangan panjang’ yang gelap dan tak berudara, dan bukan untuk berteduh dari hujan.

Akhir cerita ditutup dengan tangisan sang ayah di tepi pagar ketika ia melihat baju Bruno dan menyadari ada celah di bawah pagar yang bisa diterobos anak sebesar Bruno. Sejak itu ia merasa tidak ada yang penting lagi dengan kariernya…

Saya teringat satu lagunya Cranberries yang berjudul “War Child”. Dalam lagu itu Dolores bilang: selalu anak-anak yang menjadi korban perang, tidak peduli siapa yang menang dan siapa yang kalah, anak-anaklah yang selalu menjadi korban kepentingan politik dan teritori.

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About John Boyne

John Boyne (born 30 April 1971 in Dublin) is an Irish novelist.

He was educated at Trinity College, Dublin, and studied Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia, where he was awarded the Curtis Brown prize. But it was during his time at Trinity that he began to get published. To pay his way at that stage of his career, he worked at Waterstone's, typing up his drafts by night.
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Quotes from The Boy in the Striped...

“Sitting around miserable all day won't make you any happier.” — 59 people liked it

“The thing about exploring is that you have to know whether the thing you've found is worth finding. Some things are just sitting there, minding their own business, waiting to be discovered. Like America. And other things are probably better off left alone. Like a dead mouse at the back of the cupboard.” — 35 people liked it

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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4378870-the-boy-in-the-striped-pajamas?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320398883m/4378870.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4378870-the-boy-in-the-striped-pajamas?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne[/url]

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

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