John Boyne’s novel The Boy in the Striped Pajamas was lacking some important attributes that most good books usually have. Firstly, he used irritatingly simple language. The simplicity of it interrupted the flow of the reading and took away from what the book was actually …more about. Secondly, the main character, Bruno, was supposed to be young and innocent, but the author didn’t achieve the balance between innocence and unintelligence. No nine year-old could possibly know that little about what was going on. Even if he was sheltered by his parents he might have perceived that there was something going on. The third thing that the book was lacking was what the story was about. A well to-do German family that has family problems is not what grabs a reader’s interest. Weather or not there was an underlying message about life or something, the book was boring and slow moving, going to great lengths to describe unnecessary details.
   The simple language was definitely a big problem. While reading this, a person might find themselves getting bored simply because the words used are simplistic and from a semi-retarded nine year-old’s point of view. This simplicity took away from what the author was trying to say and it made it hard to finish or enjoy the book. The use of the word “Out-With” instead of ‘Auschwitz’ though appropriately childish, was over used and it got old fast. The same thing happened with the author’s use of ‘fury’ instead of Fuhrer, causing the seriousness and significance of that name to disappear.
   Bruno’s innocence came with a price; the semblance of intelligence. Bruno probably could have figured some things out if he only sought after answers. Instead, he decided to accept everything for goodness, like Shmuel. Shmuel was mainly what brought Bruno to an end. Had Bruno stopped, thought about why the people on the other side of the fence looked unhealthy, unhappy and generally not too great to hang out with, he could have at least drawn the conclusion that he didn’t want to be like them. Instead he dresses up as one of them, ignoring the unclean clothes and the starving people, and goes right into the thick of a very very dangerous place. Ultimately this brings about his demise, as with many other stupid people.
   The story is a different story. People usually want to read about something interesting. Not that the book was especially uninteresting, it was just sort of bland. The story centered on a boy in a well to-do German family, and what he thinks is problematic. There were things going on around him, like his mother’s affair, the interment camp and how jews were being treated that were hinted at, but the majority of the story was about how a nine year-old processed things. Mainly what the story was lacking, was differentiation and unpredictability.
   Apparently, this book is meant for both young adults and adults. The simple language made it easier to read, while most of the really important stuff the author was saying was lost, because in order to comprehend the deeper messages, it required more thinking than the language used in the book suggested was necessary. The young adults will read it and not like it because they have to think too much and the story was semi-boring, and the adults will get irritated because of the language and Bruno’s obvious unintelligence and the simple language. (less)