I thought that it was an excellent book. Though it was a little slow in the beginning it caught my attention and was impossible to put down until I finished reading it. I loved the way the point of veiw was a nine year old boy. The innocense really made the story touching and sad. Its not a book to be easily forgotten.

I need to start with a few quotes: "Powerful and unsettling...As memorable an introduction to the subject as The Diary of Anne Frank." -- USA Today. "Deeply affecting...Beautiful and sparely written." -- The Wall Street Journal. "Sure to take readers' breath away." -- Publishers Weekly. I couldn't put it down. Bruno will win your heart with his 9-year-old innocence during a time of upheaval in Nazi Germany. "Soon to be a Major Motion Picture" - I wanted to read the book first. Quick read, but the author captured the day in a most effective way: life outside and inside a concentration camp seen through the eyes of a child. It's a must read before the movie comes out in the Fall of 2008.

This was a sweet, sad story about a German boy growing up next door to a concentration camp during WWII. It's told from the boy's point of view and the ending, although somewhat predictable, was heartbreaking. Quick read, but by no means light.

People tell me that I say this all the time, but this time I really mean it. This is easily one of the best books I've ever read. As a teacher, I think it should be required reading for all students, and in the near future, I will use it in my classroom.

We've all heard/read about the holocaust many times, but this book gives us a different picture of it. We see the holocaust through the eyes of a 9 year old German boy, who is quite naive about the whole situation. I don't want to give away any of the plot, so I'll just say that his perspective is eye-opening and heart-wrenching.

Other than the topic of the book being both educational and fascinating, the writing style is unique. Boyne is a clever, humorous writer. Though the content of the book is heavy, I found myself laughing aloud several times because the writing was so hilarious. Boyne is a gifted writer.

Really impressed with the way that the author wrote this. You can see that it was written to promote discussions. Certain words were never printed in the book correctly and younger, curious readers are going to inquire about those words, leading to some very good discussion.
We must never forget all that happened in that period of time.

The ending is what makes this book unforgettable. Some have billed this as a children’s/YA book, I think that this book is anything but. Told through the eyes of 9 year old Bruno the son of a Nazi Commandant, we see his burgeoning friendship with another child a Polish Jew. The only thing that separates them is a fence.

Bruno’s naivety is quite startling when you, the adult reader, can see what is around the corner. Bruno is just a kid, thinking kid thought, living in a kids world that has always kept him sheltered. But one day, reality will hit and with it a lesson is learned - an no one will ever be the same.

I highly recommend this book to any adult and even to a middle schooler who is studying the Holocaust. This book gives quite a startling look at this time in history from a child’s perspective. Though criticized for factual inaccuracies, that is not the point the book is trying to make. Whether it was Auschwitz or Bergen Belsen, it really doesn’t matter. This is a story told though the eyes of little boys living in a grown up world.

Really good book, and a quick read. I expected it to be sad, but I couldn't get it out of my head for several days.

I liked this one! I wouldn't have picked it up if it weren't for my book group reading it. I'm not one to read war-era type books but, it ended up being a lot better than I expected.

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First Line: One afternoon, when Bruno came home from school, he was surprised to find Maria, the family's maid-- who always kept her head bowed and never looked up from the carpet-- standing in his bedroom, pulling all his belongings out of the wardrobe and packing them in four large wooden crates, even the things he'd hidden at the back that belonged to him and were nobody else's business.

Bruno is the son of a high-ranking SS officer in Nazi Germany. He and his older sister, Gretel, are growing up in luxury in Berlin when Hitler promotes their father and they find themselves moving to "Out-With" in Poland. Neither of the children have any idea what sort of place Out-With (Auschwitz) is, and they wonder what in the world all the people dressed in striped pajamas are doing on the other side of that tall fence. One day Bruno goes exploring and meets Shmuel, a young boy wearing striped pajamas who lives on the other side of the fence. They become friends.

I had heard many good things about this book, and I looked forward to reading it. If it's read at face value and as if it's a fable, it can be a very powerful book indeed. However, I had problems with it. 99% of the time I have no trouble with my "willing suspension of disbelief." I can turn off my judgement and let the writer tell me a story, and I'll believe it... as long as nothing throws me out of the narrative. I kept getting tossed out of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, and I still have a few scrapes and bruises from the experience.

The character who kept kicking me in the shins was Bruno. I found it impossible to believe that the nine-year-old son of a high-ranking Nazi would be so totally naive about Jews, Hitler, and almost everything else going on in the world around him. Putting that aside, Bruno was a spoiled, petty little brat who-- on rare occasions-- showed a glimmer of humanity, but when push came to shove, he did and said anything in his power to save his own neck. His air of entitlement made him impossible for me to like. (In fact the only character in the book that truly came to life for me was Pavel, the prisoner forced to peel potatoes and wait on the family at table.)

The ending of the book is indeed powerful. Since I normally try my best not to give plot details away, I won't say anything about it here. I'll only mention my own reaction:

You reap what you sow.

Although I did have problems with The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, I am glad that I read the book. I have a feeling that, in this particular case, Boyne's novel would've worked better if I had been a tween or a teenager with less baggage and fewer firmly held beliefs.

I would recommend this book to everyone!

Read All Book Reviews of "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas"