The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
by John Boyne

Where is 'Outwith' and who is Bruno?
How is he connected?
Soon he will meet the boy in striped pyjamas and befriend him.
But why must the boy stay behind the wire?
(description taken from Amazon.com)

I tried not to read this book for as long as I could. When I read, most often I'm looking for an escape from my daily life...hence, I trend towards fantasy, science fiction, light romances, etc. (The title of my blog reflects this, too!) As a Teen Librarian, though, I do consider it part of my job to read everything that is considered "important." Nutmeg nominees (our state book award), National Book Award nominees, summer reading list books, etc. I also feel I should be able to talk about at least a few books in every genre for reader's advisory purposes.

There are some books, though, that even with this drive, I will do all I can to avoid them for as long as possible. Books dealing with the holocaust are absolutely in this category. I tend to avoid them like the plague...but, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas has been on our summer reading lists for the high school age group for a few years now, tons of teens have read and loved it, and my audiobook ran out and I didn't have another one lined up.

So, I broke down and listened to The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. I finished it several days ago, actually. Usually I finish a book and I go straight home and type up my review. Done. This book, though, was one of those that I still haven't really been able to figure out what I want to say about it.

I went into this experience dragging my feet and have come out recommending this book to every adult I work with. The day that I finished listening to it, I pulled into work with tears in my eyes, an awed look on my face, and I just sat there. It was at least fifteen minutes before I was able to pull myself together to go into work, and then the first thing I did was go talk to the woman I knew had seen the movie to compare experiences!

This book is so well done I can't even verbalize the majesty of it. Boyne dances around the Holocaust in a way that makes it easy to remember the horror without having to directly experience it. The nine-year-old main character's perspective is one of bewildered naivete. His friendship with a boy named Shmuel develops naturally and without artiface.

Even now, I'm having trouble trying to describe the book and how it made me feel. I think that actually says more than whatever I could write. It was powerful. It was touching. It is reverberating with me in a way that few books have...

If you have not read it, yet. Go read it. Even if you hate this type of book, like I do, you should read this one. It is amazing.

The Strawberry Picker

The Strawberry Picker
by Monika Feth

Three girls room together in a small city in the German countryside. While the hunt is on for a serial killer moving through their area, two of the girls begin to worry about the "secret" boyfriend their roommate has been hiding. When she is murdered, suspicion is immediately cast upon the unknown boyfriend. As the girls investigate, and one finds a new boyfriend...who likes to be unknown...will they discover that he's the killer before it's too late?

To be honest, I am not a fan of serial killer books since they are usually kind of gory. It's only recently that I've been able to start watching shows like "Criminal Minds," without getting nightmares and having to check the locks about a thousand times. That being said...

This book was just like watching an episode of "Criminal Minds." You know from the beginning that the strawberry picker is the serial killer but you have to wait until the main characters come to the same conclusion. It was also fairly cinematic in that the chapters alternated between the killer, the girls, the police, and the writer...all of whom are involved in the mystery in some important way. You get to see all facets of the issue and how they connect.

Even as a book I wouldn't normally pick up, it was well written and suspenseful. If you like murder mysteries, thrillers, and especially books where you get to see the killer's perspective, you should try this novel. Definitely geared for upper high school into college age readers.