by: Anvesha Sharma
The boy in Striped Pyjamas is a historical fiction novel written by, John Boyne. The book has been narrated by omniscient third person.
The book is set in Nazi Germany. Bruno, the protagonist of the story, is a nine-year old boy who has been asked to leave his house in Berlin, Germany and shift to Auschwitz, Poland. Bruno has a preconceived notion that he will not be able to make any friend as the place where they have shifted has no neighbourhood.
Bruno loves exploring and thus he explores different places near his house. One day he decided to go to the area where he has been forbidden to explore. When he crosses the woods, he sees the farm he could see from his room’s window. He moves ahead and finds a Jew, Shmuel.
Bruno and Shmuel were born on same date and year, yet Shmuel looked malnutrition. The boys were separated by the fence. They wanted to play together and Bruno wanted Shmuel to have dinner with his family, but Bruno wore a very different star from Shmuel. These stars separated them and that made all the difference.
The style of writing of this book is very simple for kids. However, this book has not been recommended for kids. The book having a serious tone.
The story allows us to travel the Nazi Germany with the eyes of nine-year old which allows us to understand what kids must have gone through during Nazi Germany. The book is very sensitive and has been given four-and-a-half stars out of five by many people.