Published by Black Swan, part of Transworld Publishers
Format: Paperback
£6.99
Author:
John Boyne
Format: Paperback
EAN: 9780552773805
£6.99
Available for dispatch within 1-2 working days
EAN: 9780552773805
Published: 1 Feb 2007
Nine year old Bruno knows nothing of the Final Solution and the Holocaust. He is oblivious to the appalling cruelties being inflicted on the people of Europe by his country. All he knows is that he has been moved from a comfortable home in Berlin to a house in a desolate area where there is nothing to do and no-one to play with. Until he meets Shmuel, a boy who lives a strange parallel existence on the other side of the adjoining wire fence and who, like the other people there, wears a uniform of striped pyjamas.
Bruno's friendship with Shmuel will take him from innocence to revelation. And in exploring what he is unwittingly a part of, he will inevitably become subsumed by the terrible process.
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A small wonder of a book . . . A particular historical moment, one that cannot be told too often
- Guardian
The Holocaust as a subject insists on respect, precludes criticism, prefers silence. One thing is clear: this book will not go gently into any good night
- Observer
An extraordinary tale of friendship and the horrors of war . . . Raw literary talent at its best
- Irish Independent
A book that lingers in the mind for quite some time . . . A subtle, calculatedly simple and ultimately moving story
- The Irish Times
Simply written and highly memorable. There are no monstrosities on the page but the true horror is all the more potent for being implicit
- Ireland on Sunday
Stays ahead of its readers before delivering its killer-punch final pages
- Independent
Full of shocking juxtapositions and leads to a horrifying denouement . . . this is a deeply affecting novel
- The Sunday Times
An extraordinary story of friendship
- Daily Express
A very human and profoundly moving introduction to one of the darkest moments in history
- The Good Book Guide
Thought-provoking and moving, Boyne's book is one that lingers in the mind long after its last page
- Lincoln Target
An extraordinary story of friendship
- Daily Express
I couldn't put it down. Through the eyes of a child it was innocent and oh, so chilling. I was hooked to the last page
- Woman's Weekly
This novel is a fine addition to a once taboo area of history, at least where children's literature is concerned. It provides an account of a dreadful episode short on actual horror but packed with overtones that remain in the imagination
- Independent
John Boyne was born in Ireland in 1971 and is the author of four previous novels, The Thief of Time, The Congress of Rough Riders, Crippen and Next of Kin. His work has been translated into fourteen languages. He lives with his partner in Dublin.
