Summary: The boy in the striped pajamas
John Boyne
Chapter one; Change
When Bruno comes home one day after school, he finds Maria, packing his stuff. He asks mom what is
going on. Mother only says:’ come downstairs with me.’ There is the fury, the leader of Germany, with his
girlfriend. They were here for dinner with their mother and father. Bruno presents himself, and then he
needs to go upstairs. He thought the Fury was very rude. Later, Bruno hears his parents talk to each
other. They need to leave Berlin for Father's job. Mother doesn’t want to go, but Father shouted at her.
They needed to go the next morning, and Bruno cried because of school and all his friends. How does it
continue?
Chapter two; Out-With
Bruno doesn't like out-with. He missed his friends and his old house had 5 floors, this only had 3 floors.
When he helps Maria with unpacking he asks if he likes it here. but Maria won’t answer that question. A
man comes into his room, and Bruno hears from Maria that he is a soldier from Father. He greets him
and then he goes away. When he is settled down he goes to Gretel, his sister's bedroom. He talks with
Gretel about out-with and he talks about his friends and Gretel said she missed them too. Then Bruno
said:’ I don’t think the other children here look nice.’ Gretel looks confused and Bruno leads her to his
window. from there you can see a great fence, and behind that all kinds of people, but they were very
dirty. They don’t understand why all these people are there, why would you be there? How strange!
Chapter three; Stupid Father
Bruno wants to speak to father, but in berlin it was always, STAY OUT OF FATHER OFFICE AT ALL TIMES.
He knocked on the door, then a voice said:’Enter.’ Bruno said hello and sat down.’So what do you think?’,
asked his father, ‘what do I think?’ Bruno says. He wants to go back to Berlin, but that is not an option,
thinks father. Bruno keeps asking why they can’t go back but then it is enough and Bruno needs to go to
his room. But then Bruno has another question, and he sits back down.’Who are all these people
outside?’ Bruno asks. First father doesn’t understand it but then he says:’Well, they’re not really people
, at all, bruno.’ ’They’re not?’ ‘No they’re not. don’t worry about them.’ When Bruno leaves the room he
says:’ Heil Hitler.’ Everyone says that, so maybe it is goodbye. A few days later, he talks to Maria and says
that coming here is a big mistake, and that his father is stupid. Then Maria says:’You must not say that
about your father, he has done many things for me.’ She explains that her mother knew his father when
he was a boy. and she worked for his grandmother. When her mother got ill his father paid for
everything. Then Gretel comes in and stops the conversation. Gretel wants a bath and Bruno says:’do it
yourself, you can do that.’
Chapter four; An accident
Bruno wants to make himself a swing, with a tree. He only needs some rope and an old tyre.
Pavel, who prepared the vegetables, comes when Lieutenant Kotler shouts:’Come over here you—.’ And
then Pavel takes Bruno to the shed to take everything he needs. But Bruno was not happy, leaving his
sister alone with Kotler, because he was not a nice man.
The accident happened a few hours later. The tyre turned when he kicked the tree and then he woke up
again at Pavels arms. Pavel explains that he was going too high and that he fell on his knee. Bruno has a
little cut and Pavel starts to clean it. Bruno says it is maybe worse than he thinks but pavel says it is not
and he was a doctor before he came here so nothing to worry about. Bruno’s mom comes in and sends
Bruno upstairs, then Bruno hears mother say something to Pavel:’ Thank you but if the commandant
asks, we’ll say that I cleaned Bruno’s cut.’
Chapter five; Grandmother leaves the party
The two people Bruno missed the most were Grand- Mother and Father. Grandfather was 73, he was
having a cafe, and grandmother could never be old in Bruno's eyes. In the past she sang at the theater.
when there were parties, she always sang a lot of songs, and they did little plays together. But the last
one went wrong. A week before it happened the Fury came for that dinner with Eva. And father started
to wear his new uniform. Grandfather was proud of his son but Grandmother was angry.’ What did I do
wrong with you, Ralf? You think that uniform makes you special and you don’t care what it means.’
Grandmother cried. Mother said:’Don’t you think he looks handsome?’ ‘Handsome? Do you think that is
the most important thing, you stupid girl.’ When Bruno was upstairs, he heard Grandmother leaving the
house. Nothing changed at out-with except that Bruno and Gretel were getting a tutor because Father
thought they needed one.