Analysis: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, by John Boyne

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Throughout history, there have been many noteworthy events that have happened. While there are many sources that can explain these events, historical fiction novels are some of the best ways to do so, as they provide insight on the subject matter, and make you feel connected to the people that have gone through it. An example of a historical fiction that I have just read is The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne, a story about the life of a German boy who becomes friends with a Jewish boy in a concentration camp during the holocaust. The author of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas portrays the historical period well,and uses many details from the real life holocaust to make his story more believable. This book is a classic, and is a very good look on how it feels to be living in Nazi Germany.
First of all, to get a proper understanding of the events in my book, I did some research to paint a picture of the holocaust. The reason that the Germans started the holocaust a long time ago was because they believed that the Jewish people were minions of the devil, and that they were bent on destroying the Christian mind. Many Christians in Germany were also mad at them for killing Jesus in the Bible. Throughout the holocaust, Hitler, the leader of Germany at the time, and the Nazis killed about six million Jewish people, more than two-thirds of all of the Jewish people in Europe at the time. They also killed people who were racially inferior, such as people of Jehovah's Witness religion, and even some Germans that had physical and mental handicaps. The concentration camp that appears in this story is Auschwitz, which was three camps in one: a prison camp, and extermination camp, and a slave labor camp. When someone was sent to Auschw...

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...y educational, and made me feel so much sadness over the holocaust. It made me pull away with not just a sad story, but also true horror on what has happened so long ago. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is by far the best historical fiction novel I have ever read. In the end, it just makes me happy that times have changed, for the better.

Works Cited
“Auschwitz.” Encyclopaedia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 21 Feb. 2014.
“BBC TWO unravels the secrets of Auschwitz.” BBC. British Broadcasting Corporation, 12 Mar. 2004. Web. 4 Mar. 2014
Berenbaum, Michael. “Holocaust.” World Book Student. World Book, 2014. Web. 21 Feb. 2014
Boyne, John. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. New York: Random House Inc., 2006. Print.
Wilensky, Gabriel. “Why did the Holocaust Start?” Six million crucifixions. Six Million Crucifixions, 2009. Web. 1 Mar. 2014

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