inthecommonhours 's review for:

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne

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I don't know how to rate this. It is beautiful in a way---if read as a fable or fantasy. I think it would be an ideal read for a classroom at the END of a unit on WWII or the Holocaust, but terrible as an introduction. Boyne clearly had a singular idea that he brought to fruition, and seen in that light, it is a wonder how he did so. While the message is solid and sadly still needed, the idea is so far-fetched and unrealistic, I would have enjoyed it more if it wasn't tied to a historical event. In a way, his play on language allows that---or maybe calls on the reader to allow him this license.

I'm reading with my soon-t0-be 10 year old, and finished it without him so I can be prepared. While he knows enough about WWII to be annoyed at Bruno's cluelessness, he is still innocently unaware of just how cruel humankind can be.