The+Boy+in+the+Striped+Pajamas

Whitney Tipton

Boyne, J. (2006). //The Boy in the Striped Pajamas//. New York, NY: Random House, Inc.

Summary __The Boy in the Striped Pajamas,__ written by John Boyne, is a fictional story told through the eyes of 9-year-old Bruno. He is a young German boy, the son of a distinguished German military official. Bruno is distraught at the recent move his family has taken him on. As he discovers his new home, deeper political and social issues hover around him but are all but apparent to Bruno. The novel follows this naïve young adolescent through his exploration and journey to discovery. As he explores, he discovers people living near by that only wear striped pajamas. Bruno befriends a boy, similar in age, that lives in behind a tall fence and who wears those same striped pajamas. As the story is told in a fable like tone, readers are given a glimpse into the Auschwitz concentration camp setting, which is the reality of this novel. The book follows the unlikely and ironic friendship of these two young boys and eventually ends with a terrible and surprising twist of fate.

Critique I found this novel to be engaging and thought provoking. Bruno’s journey opened the readers’ eyes to a first hand account of this time in history. While some critics did mention the more lyrical portrayal of the concentration camps opposed to the harsh realities captured in history, this novel opens the door of discussion for historical content, emotional effects, and its practical application. I felt as though the relationship between these two ironic characters mirrors the struggles of young adolescents and engages them in a very influential time period in history. I plan on using this novel in each of my classes.

Application in the classroom

Math-
 * Math students could dive into the exponential number of lives affected by the Holocaust.
 * Students could graph population trends and relate to social climate of that day.

Language Arts-
 * Literature classes could dissect this text and discuss points of views, biases, foreshadowing, and the value of historical texts (fictional or otherwise).
 * Teachers could provide reflection journal prompts for various chapters, enhancing the emotional lessons paired with historical content from the novel.

Social Studies-
 * The ideas are endless! Students could write from another fictional character’s perspective (from all political and social sides) during the time of the Holocaust.
 * Students could debate each side of this highly controversial time in history.
 * Students could piece together a timeline of events is history and relate back to historical context within the novel.
 * Students could compare and contract the people groups from this time in history to “social fences” in today’s society.