By: John Boyne Publisher: David Fickling Books Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Label: David Fickling Books Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 240 Publication Date: October 23, 2007 Reading Level: Young Adult Release Date: October 23, 2007
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 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.
Highly recommended for adults and teens alike This is an excellent addition to Holocaust literature for young adults. When nine-year old Bruno and his family move to "Off with" because of the "Fury", he is confused and angry- throughout the book, Bruno never really learns what is happening next door. Showing the camps through the eyes of a child on the outside of the fence was a novel technique and allowed for spare descriptions that underlined the looming horror. Once Bruno befriends a young Jewish boy, the reader knows the story isn't going to end well. Despite that knowledge, and the fact that the actual friendship is so unrealistic, Boyne's writing is so powerful that I still found myself tearing up at the end. I highly recommend this book for adults and teens alike.
The Holocaust through the eyes of a child Bruno is an innocent and sheltered nine-year-old boy from Berlin. His father is an officer in the German army during WWII. After "The Fury" comes to dinner, Bruno is told that "The Fury" has great things in store for his father and they suddenly move from their family home to a not-so-nice house in "Out-With." From his new bedroom window, Bruno can see a high fence. The dirt area inside the fence is barren except for many low huts inhabited by a large number of people, all wearing striped pajamas.
Bruno, who dreams of becoming an explorer, follows the fence until he meets a thin, sad boy named Shmuel, who is sitting on the other side of the fence. The boys discover that they have the same birthday and decide that they are destined to be best friends.
Because the story is told through the eyes of an innocent and sheltered boy who does not understand what "Out-With" is really all about, the violence and brutality is more subdued than in other Holocaust stories I have read. This actually made the ending even more disturbing, as Bruno doesn't see it coming.
What a beautiful, yet powerfully written story...not just for kids My wife borrowed this book from a friend who had just finished it while we were out at the beach for the weekend. He didn't tell her what it was about except to say that it was a must read. When I went to bed last night I picked it up and started reading it. I woke up the next morning and finished it about an hour later...I couldn't put it down. What a powerful story written in such a simple way about a very complex subject. I have just finished writing my recently Bar Mitzvahed older son who is away at camp that I am going to send him this book and I am crying because the story really got to me. I am Jewish and lost over 100 relatives to the Camps during the war. It is sometime very hard to explain what happened during the war and especially hard to get kids to understand what happened to the Jews and others in the Camps. This is a must read for kids and their parents. It is very simply written so it is very easy for kids to read and understand. Yet it is so compelling that even adult readers will appreciate it. Most books of this genre are/were written by Camp survivors and never from the other side. While this story does not make any effort at rationalizing or appolgizing for what the Germans did it does tell the story from that side of the fence. This is a story that you can discuss with your kids at many levels, there are even some thought provoking questions provided in the back of the book that will make for some very interesting discussions.
Cheap sentimentalism In my view, this book is to tragedy what pornography is to erotism. The author seems to think that what really happened in Auschwitz was not poignant enough and that it would be a great idea to add another turn of the screw by inventing a totally incredible story. I am not a fanatic of realism. In fact, I love fantasy, but I think that some subject matters benefit from a sober treatment. If someone wants to read a good book about Auschwitz, he or she should turn to Primo Levi's "If this is a Man", in which the Italian author tells of his experience there with great honesty and sensibility. I can assure you that it is moving enough. By comparison, John Boyne's novel looks superficial and cheap.
One to remember... I had to read this book for school and honestly wasn't looking forward to it.
The book is very powerful, and has a central theme of humility and the ultimate value of human life. I was amazed with the ending - it was not what you expect, but had a lasting impression on me.
I like how the author used the fence to symbolize the division between Jews and Nazis - it was something young children could understand but that adults would also find interesting.
Anything Goes Trivia
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