PENGUIN The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne - Paperback

Gripande!

Ottimo per chi ha bisogno di consolidare la conoscenza della lingua inglese. Non troppo facile, né troppo difficile.

Un libro que los estudiantes de inglés deberían leerlo.

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne is a well-written piece of literature, in which we follow Bruno, a nine-year-old boy, while he goes through circumstances that will transform his life. The book starts out in the city of Berlin, Germany, where Bruno is quite content with what his life consists of. He has a big house with five floors (if you count the basement and the little room at the top with the window), as well as three best friends for life. He comes home one day and discovers that the maid is packing all of his possessions into four large crates, then later finds out from his mother that they are moving. When he arrives at the new house he utterly loathes it. The new house only has three floors, is miles from any other dwellings, and there’s a strange tall fence behind it. Bruno meets a boy on the other side of the barricade and befriends him, but a perfect friendship doesn’t always promise a perfect ending. Written from a child’s point of view, innocence is a major theme of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. Bruno doesn’t know the difference between good and evil, and can’t seem to figure out the difference between himself and the boy on the other side of the fence. Bruno’s friendship with this boy demonstrates an extreme lack of knowledge. The people on the other side of the fence were Jews, and he was German. During that time there was extreme prejudice held against the Jews. They were considered less than human, and no German that wanted any respect would have anything to do with them. Innocence and prejudice go hand in hand, a lack of innocence can lead one to prejudice, but if one has innocence, there can be no prejudice. Innocence can keep you from harm, but in Bruno’s case, it led him straight into it. John Boyne’s writing captures the very essence of equality. None of the adults realize that Jews are no different than they are, and yet Bruno can see past the mask of prejudice and recognizes that he is indeed the same as the boy on the other side of the fence. Boyne writes the way a child would think, for example: “[Bruno’s] mouth made the shape of an O (pg 6).” The average adult would not think this way. Boyne also supplants words like “Führer” with “Fury”. Because Boyne is writing from a child’s point of view, his writing corresponds with the mentality of a child. Boyne’s sentences are exceedingly lengthy and sometimes slightly confusing, which can make reading aloud quite difficult, rereading certain passages may be necessary. Silent reading will essentially eliminate this problem, and will keep the message unhindered. Reading The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is a great experience, and it will definitely be worth your while. John Boyne’s book reveals the major injustices of the Holocaust, while creating a bond between us and the characters. Overall The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is a fantastic novel that everyone should take the time to read.

Parfait pour un niveau intermédiaire en anglais