Book: The Boy In The Stripped Pyjamas

Setting: 1942 in Berlin, Germany during World War II.
Category: Holocaust
Age Level: Middle school and up
Main character: Bruno, a naive 9-year-old German boy who comes from a well-off family.
Plot: Bruno has a privileged life. He lives in a large house in Berlin and has servants to tend to his every need.  Despite all this wealth, Bruno does not really understand where it all comes from.  In fact, he doesn't really know what his father does for a living, only that he is apparently an important person. One day, the Fury (Hitler) makes a visit to the family, where his father is promoted and becomes a Commandant. Before Bruno knows it, his whole family packs up and leaves to go live in Out-With in Poland.  Bruno hates the move and yearns to come back home to be with his friends.  There's nothing at Out-With, except the dirty looking people in stripped pajamas who are enclosed behind a fence.  One day, Bruno goes on an exploration mission outside and he meets a Jewish boy by the name of Shmuel, who lives behind the fence.  They become fast friends and Bruno often tries to visit him secretly, bringing along food for Shmuel to eat. This friendship strikes Bruno as particularly different because he has never had a friend he could never touch.  Hence, the friend represents the stark contrast between the life of Shmuel and Bruno, boys who are the same age, yet live completely opposite lives.

Written by John Boyne, an Irish novelist, The Boy in the Stripped Pyjamas is a fictional book that describes events through the eyes of a child named Bruno. Therefore, everything that the reader knows is only what Bruno sees or comes to understand. As a result, the war and the atrocity of the Holocaust is viewed in a naive manner, making the story innocent, yet somewhat sad.  The ending of the novel in my opinion brings the story around full circle and gives the book a bit more substance.

I think The Boy in the Stripped Pyjamas would be a good read for young readers because I think Bruno's callowness would be something they could relate to, as they themselves are not yet adults and are learning about the world just as he is. The book does not give too much historical information and it follows a straightforward way of storytelling. Is the plot believable or historically accurate? To be honest, no.  I doubt a German and Jewish boy can meet up so often to talk to one another without anyone finding out.  I doubt the ending could ever happen and I doubt actually quite a few other things.  Yet, I do have to remind myself that is what happens when you write a piece of fiction.  You use your imagination to write a story, and you just go with whatever pops in your head.

The Boy in the Stripped Pyjamas isn't one of my favorite reads, but I can understand why people loved reading this book and I can also see why some people disliked it.  Perhaps I would have enjoyed this reading a bit more had I not read The Book Thief (which similarly is set in Germany during World War II) prior to this reading this novel. Where The Boy in the Stripped Pyjamas lacks, is where The Book Thief prevails.