Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (The)
by
John Boyne

What we thought:

Essentially a simple story, but hauntingly effective, it gives an account of the Holocaust from the angle of a 9 year-old German gentile. A couple of the group read this with their young children who made some very interesting comments.

Synopsis/Review:

This work was set in 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 strange people he can see in the distance. But, Bruno longs to be an explorer and decides that there must be more to this desolate new place than what meets the eye. While exploring his new environment, he meets another boy whose life and circumstances are very different to his own, and their meeting results in a friendship that has devastating consequences.

Author's website:

N/A