Another Good Read

I know I am behind the times, but I have only just read John Boyne's The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. This deceptively simple story can be read on a range of levels, but whichever way you choose to look at it, it really is a beautiful little book. From all reports, aimed at the young adult audience, it really is a book that stands up equally well to adult viewing.

"Listening" to Bruno is just like talking to my 10 year old nephew. The pattern of language, the focus for discussions, the things in his life that are meaningful - his friends, his family, his annoying older sister the hopeless case. All of it steps forward into another century and is relevant in the life of little boys everywhere.

I can only assume that there will be detractors to this book - seems to be par for the course for anything relating to the Holocaust, but sometimes the most hearfelt stories are those that tell the tale simply. There is no need to spell out the atrocities that occurred. The reader knows that this tale will never have a happy ending, and yet Boyne holds your attention all the way through. I may not have had tears on my face, but my heart was heavy...and yes, I remembered.