The Boy in the Striped Pajamas Book Reflection

Boyne's The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

     Bruno is a nine year-old boy who lives in Berlin, Germany during Nazi times. He has a good life in Berlin, with friends, family, and a five-story house. But that all changes when he comes home one day to see the maid packing his things, and finds out that he and his family will be moving to a place called "Out-With." He will have to move far away from his best friends, his grandparents, and the place he used to call home. Bruno hates his new house and pines for the day his family moves back home. But one day, when Bruno goes exploring around his new home, he meets a new friend named Shmuel sitting behind a fence. Bruno begins to really like his new friend and finds out that they both have the same birthday. As the novel progresses, Bruno begins to forget his old life, and realizes how he actually likes his new life with Shmuel better than his old life in Berlin.

     Throughout the novel, Bruno goes through a character development involving where he thinks his home is. At the beginning Bruno hates his new house and cannot wait to go back home to his friends and family. But then, in Chapter 9, he begins to accept his new life and even starts to forget what he liked about his life in Berlin. By the end of the book, Bruno likes his home in "Out-With" so much that he doesn't want to go back to Berlin with his mother. John Boyne creates a voice of a nine year-old boy with long syntax and colloquial language. Many sentences, especially when Bruno is exploring his new house, have a long sentence structure as to represent the wandering thoughts of a child. An example of this is found in Chapter 2 when Bruno is exploring his "Out-With" home. "The house in Berlin had stood on a quiet street and alongside it were a handful of other big houses like his own, and it was always nice to look at them because they were almost the same as his house but not quite, and other boys lived in them who he played with (if they were friends) or steered clear of (if they were trouble). The new house, however, stood all on its own in an empty, desolate place and there were no other houses anywhere to be seen, which meant there would be no other families around and no other boys to play with, neither friends nor trouble." The narration of the book is realistic in the fact that it is made of colloquial language and sounds just like how a child would tell the story. When Bruno mentions the camp his family is stationed near, he calls it "Out-With" instead of Auschwitz which is how a child might interpret it. One thing that makes this book so gripping is the dramatic irony that seeps from its pages. Anytime Bruno is talking to Shmuel, almost everything Bruno says about Shmuel makes the reader twinge as they know Bruno is wrong but just doesn't know about the concentration camps. This dramatic irony builds to an intense, gut-wrenching scene at the end of the novel. "'There aren't any good soldiers,' said Shmuel. 'Of course there are,' said Bruno. 'Who?' 'Well, Father, for one,' said Bruno. 'That's why he has such an impressive uniform and why everyone calls him Commandant and does whatever he says. The Fury has big things in mind for him because he's such a good soldier.' 'There aren't any good soldiers,' repeated Shmuel." Bruno thinks his Father is a "good soldier," but doesn't know that his Father works for those who kill millions of Jews like Shmuel. All of this; the syntax, the irony, and the language; all help to develop the character of Bruno that is so essential to the story. This character of Bruno is that of an innocent child, one who does not realize the evil of his people. John Boyne juxtaposes the sheer innocence of a child to the despicable nature of Nazi Germany. Whereas most Germans, including Bruno's family, are brainwashed into believing that Jews are bad and should be taken out of sight, the innocence of childhood shines through and shows that any hatred towards Jews is unjust and wrong.

     Looking back at this book, I would have to say that I like it. This novel is oozing with dramatic irony and at times can really make you wish you could tell Bruno what Shmuel's life was really like. The biggest part of the novel, though, is how Boyne makes you feel for the characters and then just rips your heart out at the very end. What makes the ending so gripping is the fact you have no clue that it is coming and it shocks you. The book by no means has a cheery tone, but the book takes a harsh light at the very end. I would not suggest this book to young kids because of that sudden harsh tone, but it is a great read for middle/high school students and even young adults. This book will continue to be popular as long as people remember and are interested in the Holocaust. John Boyne has written a very gripping Holocaust story and if you are interested be prepared: it is a sad story.