The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas

The million-copy global bestseller that captured readers across the globe.'A small wonder of a book . . . A particular historical moment, one that cannot be told too often' GuardianWhat happens when innocence is confronted by monstrous evil?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.'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'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

Short-listed for British Book Awards: WH Smith Children's Book of the Year Award 2007 Short-listed for Independent Booksellers' Week Book of the Year Award: Children's Book of the Year 2007

“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

John Boyne was born in Ireland in 1971. He is the author of eleven novels for adults, six for younger readers and a collection of short stories. Perhaps best known for his 2006 multi-award-winning book The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas, John's other novels, notably The Absolutist and A History of Loneliness, have been widely praised and are international bestsellers. Most recently, The Heart's Invisible Furies was a Richard & Judy Bookclub word-of-mouth bestseller, and A Ladder to the Sky was shortlisted for the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year Award in association with Listowel Writers' Week.His novels are published in over fifty languages.

What happens when innocence is confronted by monstrous evil? 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. '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' 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

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