A small wonder of a book (The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas - John Boyne)

Member Name: CrazyJamie

Product:	The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas - John Boyne
Date:	22/07/09 (81 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: An enjoyable and original, yet hard hitting account of the Holocaust

Disadvantages: It's a tad short, but ultimately doesn't suffer for it

Now and again I take a break from the usual genres that I read and pick up a book that falls into the category that I call 'books that I think I should read'. In other words, books that have in some way been critically acclaimed or had a lot of fuss made about them, whether old or new. And so it was with The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas, a book that had enough fuss made about it in order to apparently warrant a film. Always an interesting sign.

The book follows a nine year old boy called Bruno, who is the son of a Nazi commander during the second world war. The family live in a luxury house in Berlin where Bruno plays with his three best friends, is looked after by the family's maid, and only has to worry about dealing with his big sister, who he refers to as a 'Hopeless Case'. However, after a visit from a man that Bruno knows only as 'The Fury' (which, as he is told by his sister, he is pronouncing wrong), the family are forced to move to a bleak and shabby house in a place called 'Out-With' (which, again, Bruno is told he is pronouncing wrong), far from the luxury life that Bruno is used to.

What follows is Bruno's attempts at satisfying his boredom in such a remote place (which is so far away from Berlin it might not even be in Germany at all), which with soldiers wandering around all the time and no friends to play with, is no easy task. Still, as a budding explorer Bruno eventually finds his way along a wire fence where he meets a boy his own age called Shmuel. Like the other people on that side of the fence, Shmuel is wearing striped pyjamas and seems somewhat ill and thin, yet despite this a friendship blossoms between the two.

Of course, as should be obvious by now, this book is an attempt at telling the story of the Holocaust through the eyes of a nine year old boy. And it really is something of a wonder of a book. It is short at just over a couple of hundred pages, but the plot is not hurried and develops at a skilful pace. Bruno's education as to what is happening in the world around him, rather than being forced by the nightmarish land that he now lives on the edge of, is slowly developed through encounters with other characters. And whilst these characters are never developed beyond what is needed to move the plot along, they are varied and interesting and each adds a new piece to the puzzle. Bruno is left wondering why a servant who tends to his cut knee claims to have once been a doctor, he develops an intense dislike for a young nazi soldier who refers to him as a 'little man', and so on.

The reader is acutely aware of the significance of each of these encounters and knows the historical facts on which they are based, but Bruno's lack of appreciation of the events that he is living on the edge of manages to charm and horrify in equal measure. His lack of ability to see what is patently obvious is meant to signify the same trait in the general German population during that time, but the way that Bruno's outlook on these events is stuck in between the standard preoccupations of a nine year old is one of the great strengths of the narrative.

The book is not perfect, and indeed its habit of moving from the shockingly realistic to an almost fable like setting will no doubt irritate some whilst enthralling others. But these bumps are ultimately evened out as the plot weaves towards its finale, which is as emotional and hard hitting as any other story based around this sensitive time period.

In terms of the book's target audience, it is suitable to be read by children, but their reading experience will be remarkably different to that of an adult reader. In fact, for someone reading this book with no prior knowledge of the Holocaust the journey will be very similar to Bruno's himself, with realisation of the events coming slower and in a piecemeal manner. There would no doubt be a lack of overall appreciation, which is indeed shared by Bruno himself, but that is not to say that children should not read this book. It is not written in complicated language and is not graphic, and is therefore entirely suitable for children. It's just perhaps a book that they will want to revisit at a later stage when they are in possession of a more worldly historical knowledge, as indeed they should.

In fact, the double experience of reading this book both as a child and an adult would no doubt prove to be one more reason to recommend a book that takes a tired topic and reinvigorates it with a story containing true imagination and flair. It's enjoyable, easy to read, and historically relevant. In short, it's something that you should read.

Summary: One to be added to your collection