Title: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

Author: John Boyne

Genre: Historical Fiction

Publisher: Knopf  Books for Young Readers

Format: Hardcover     

Pages: 384

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Synopsis (Goodreads):

The international bestseller that has touched millions of readers around the world is now available in a deluxe illustrated edition, featuring powerful illustrations by acclaimed artist Oliver Jeffers.

Berlin, 1942:  When Bruno returns home from school one day, he discovers that his belongings are being packed in crates. His father has received a promotion and the family must move to a new house far, far away, where there is no one to play with and nothing to do. A tall fence stretches as far as the eye can see and cuts him off from the strange people in the distance.      But Bruno decides there must be more to this desolate new place than meets the eye. While exploring his new environment, he meets another boy whose life and circumstances are very different from his own, and their meeting results in a friendship that has devastating consequences.

Now available in a gorgeous deluxe edition featuring stunning artwork by award-winning illustrator Oliver Jeffers, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas takes on dramatic new intensity.

Review:

This book is so sad! And is such a beautiful story! I can’t believe I hadn’t read this book until now!

The story centres around Bruno, a young boy living in Germany during the Second World War. Bruno is very naive and doesn’t understand what is going on around him. He doesn’t understand that he is living beside a death camp and he doesn’t understand that his father is working for that camp. Bruno grew up believing that Germans are superior to others, but can’t explain why. While you feel a lot of compassion for the characters in the book, my heart went out to Bruno the most as he could not understand all the terrible things that were happening around him!

I love this edition too! It has great illustrations, and normally I like a novel with a few pictures, but these illustrations really added to the depth and character of the book! Very well done!

Happy reading bookworms!