literary critique on The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
Nicole Carreker
Ms.Barnes
Honors World Literature
26 February 2015
Literary Critique
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas I am critiquing the reviews of the children’s novel, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, written by John Boyne in 2006. This book was written to “unintentionally” give incite about the time period without the harshness so a kid can read it. The time period was the Holocaust and the main characters’ (Bruno) father was a Nazi leader. I read an article written by David Cesarani. The first thing he commented on is that the book is implausible. Which means in this time period and under the situations Bruno’s curiosity would not have been tolerated. He states that Bruno would have never meet Shmuel because Shmuel would have been gassed when first arriving at the concentration camp. Secondly, the fence would have been heavily guarded which would have deterred Bruno from going under the fence. He also mentions that the mispronunciation of Fuhrer and Auschwitz would not have accured for a normal nine year old German. Cesarani feels that Boyne distorted the history too much although that is what makes it a historical fable (Cesarani 2007). However Ed Wright, a writer of another review believes that even though the history was made not to be as gruesome as it truly was it would not affect the intentional reader’s satisfaction. Wright warns the reader to be prepared for reading this novel will provoke questions about the abhorrent conditions in which it is set and you may well find yourself needing to explain the Holocaust (Wright 2006).
Ultimately, in my opinion the author did well with giving the reader enough information to make them interested in wanting to find out more about the topic. Both authors of the reviews and me as well found this book enjoyable for its intended readers.
Works Cited
Cesarani, David. "Literary Review - on The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas." Literary Review - David Cesarani on The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. Nancy Sladek,
Ms.Barnes
Honors World Literature
26 February 2015
Literary Critique
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas I am critiquing the reviews of the children’s novel, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, written by John Boyne in 2006. This book was written to “unintentionally” give incite about the time period without the harshness so a kid can read it. The time period was the Holocaust and the main characters’ (Bruno) father was a Nazi leader. I read an article written by David Cesarani. The first thing he commented on is that the book is implausible. Which means in this time period and under the situations Bruno’s curiosity would not have been tolerated. He states that Bruno would have never meet Shmuel because Shmuel would have been gassed when first arriving at the concentration camp. Secondly, the fence would have been heavily guarded which would have deterred Bruno from going under the fence. He also mentions that the mispronunciation of Fuhrer and Auschwitz would not have accured for a normal nine year old German. Cesarani feels that Boyne distorted the history too much although that is what makes it a historical fable (Cesarani 2007). However Ed Wright, a writer of another review believes that even though the history was made not to be as gruesome as it truly was it would not affect the intentional reader’s satisfaction. Wright warns the reader to be prepared for reading this novel will provoke questions about the abhorrent conditions in which it is set and you may well find yourself needing to explain the Holocaust (Wright 2006).
Ultimately, in my opinion the author did well with giving the reader enough information to make them interested in wanting to find out more about the topic. Both authors of the reviews and me as well found this book enjoyable for its intended readers.
Works Cited
Cesarani, David. "Literary Review - on The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas." Literary Review - David Cesarani on The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. Nancy Sladek,
Cited: Cesarani, David. "Literary Review - on The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas." Literary Review - David Cesarani on The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. Nancy Sladek, 2007. Web. 25 Feb. 2015. Wright, Ed. "The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas." The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas- Book Reviews-Books. The Age Company Ltd., 3 Jan. 2006. Web. 26 Feb. 2015.