The Boy in Striped Pajamas

Boyne, John. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. New York: David Fickling Books, 2006. 1 -216. Print.

Summary:

When Bruno a 9 year old boy returns home one day from school, is surprised to find his nanny Maria packing all his items. He is then told by his mom that he is to leave Berlin in the next few days with his whole family, to a new house. Bruno was really sad by this news, and started asking his mom so many questions. He was asking her all the time, why they had to leave Berlin, and that he would miss his three best friends. His mom told him that his dad has been promoted to commandant, by The Fury, and has a new job in a different country. So in the next few days his family moves to a house called Out-With. Bruno's first impressions on this house were that it was too small comparing to his old five story house in Berlin, and that there is no one to play with, there. One day when Bruno went exploring he found the big fence that he would stare at from his window every day, and he found a boy sitting behind it. He discovered this boy was called Shmuel, who was born on the same day ass Bruno. Throughout the year, Bruno and Shmuel became best friends, and to their surprise, they found out that they both had many similarities. Every day Bruno wants to go to back to his house in Berlin. Does Bruno manage to live in Out-With? Does he go back to Berlin? Does he stay friends with Shmuel? Does he see his best three friends in Berlin? Read the book to find out.

History:

Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Worker's Party (Nazi Party) rise to power in Germany in 1933, forming a fascist regime committed to repudiating the Treaty of Versailles, persecuting and removing Jews and other minorities from German society, expanding Germany's territory, and opposing the spread of communism.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1930s  On page 126, there is an example of the nationalities.

Book Setting:

The historical setting in the book compares a lot to the real history in the 1930's. In The Boy in the Striped Pajamas the Germans were persecuting the Jews. In this case Bruno's father and his fellow German soldiers were either killing, hurting or taking the Jews to the other side of the fence.

Setting Affecting Bruno:

The setting affected Bruno a lot, because it didn't allow him to play with Shmuel, or go to the other side of the fence. He wasn't allowed because he was German, and Shmuel was Jewish. There was a fence which both him and Shmuel weren't allowed to pass.

Main Characters:

The major character(s) is Bruno. Bruno is a 9 year old boy who's smart, loves exploring, and is friendly. There is another character that comes in the middle of the book called Shmuel, who isn't a really major character. Shmuel is Jewish, he lives on the other side of the fence, so he is pale all the time, skinny because the lack of food, although Bruno would get him some everyday, and is bald because of lice.

Characterization Techniques:

In chapter 10, Pavel the cook, dropped the bottle of wine on Lt. Kolter. The author used action as a characterization technique, and made the character Lt. Kolter slap Pavel really hardly.

Perspective:

This story's perspective is told in third person. The narrator tells us the story. This point of view helps us see Bruno as a boy. It also helps us understand Bruno's life, and how he feels.

Theme:

The major theme is justice. All the Jews want to revenge themselves against the Germans. Like Shmuel's family has been separated, and like other Jews. They are killed each day just because they are Jewish. If I were to give my perspective about this, I would say this is really unfair. This is considered Persecution.

Reflection:

This book is a really important book and a good role model. This book is important, because it tells the people to be kind, and friendly. It also tells us how persecution played a big role in the 1930's. At the beginning I really liked reading this book. I liked how the author introduced Bruno, and his whole family. I would recommend this book to people, who like to read a book that makes you want to keep on reading. I would give this a book a 9/10, because I really didn't like the ending and was really disappointed. I really wish the author changed the ending of the book, that would have made give it a 10/10.

Vocab:

1) Foreseeable future: Def: In the predictable future.
2) Inconsolable Def: Not able to be comforted, or sad.
3) Persisted Def: To last or endure tenaciously.
4) Senile Def: Showing a decline or deterioration of physical strength or mental functioning.
5) Ergo Def: Therefore