Hey Rattlers!
I had a request from monkygrrl to provide a forum for a discussion of this book. It is a fictional tale set during the Holocaust, but the story is told to us from a very unique perspective-- through the eyes of Bruno, a nine-year-old son of a Nazi Commander. Due to the youth and innocence of Bruno, you may have a lot of questions about what's going on, and the who, and the where, etc.! I would be more than happy to field questions. Also, the reviews I read stated this book for grades 9 and up, so it's not for the younger readers, even though the language may seem like it is.
I also wanted to share that this book has already been optioned into a movie! You can check out the current information here. It's got the actor who played Remus Lupin in the Harry Potter movies as Bruno's father (I think that's who he is playing, anyway!)!
Anyone read it? Monkygrrl, I hope you jump in the conversation soon!
:)
Mrs. P
10 comments:
Hola, this is Monkeygrrl, also known as Sarah. I read the book and bawled my eyes out. I am Jewish, and it was a very interesting way to tell the story, a way I have never heard before. I am not sure if I want to see the movie. It would be very depressing, but it would be interesting. When I saw the Anne Frank play, I cried, even though I had read the book, because you could see the emotion on their faces! Any tips, or ideas for a discussion?
anyone out there?
I am not Jewish, but having a father who was the same age as Anne Frank I think of what would have happened if he had been born in Germany and still had the polio he had at age 5. He also would have been one of the
"unacceptable". What the nazis did was unacceptable.
I'm not sure if it is believable that at age 10 (he was 9 when the story started and they had been there a year) he would have thought the building a nice way to keep them dry from the rain, but it was definitely a different perspective.
I wish he had acknowledged knowing the other boy when asked in the kitchen...
omg. i know! it made me so mad that small children were taught to hate these people-and even if they weren't, it was implied. i cant imagine if people were taught to hate each other because of the color of their eyes, or their parentage or religon. especially now, when people are usually so accepting.
Hi Sarah, it's Sam! (F.Y.I.: she made me read the book). I HATE Bruno's parents! They are selfish, self-centered jerks. I haven't finished the book but I am almost positive that the ending is going to be very unsatisfying. Personally, I don't like books with sad endings. They just keep you wondering. About the movie, I would want to watch it because I like to watch movies based on books I've read before. Apparently, I think it helps my imagination.
wow sam. getting a little violent out there, arent we? i agree. although, his mom knows that what his father is doing is wrong. maria, their servant, is so sweet tho. I feel like she is very important in the story, just by siding against the nazis.
Yup-a-doodle... Maria is WAY WAY more caring than Bruno's parents. She actually kind of acts more like a parent to Bruno than his parents ever did!
Did she really side against them though? It would have been HARD to stand against them knowing you would then suffer the consequences, but if more had done so, there could have been fewer killed. Think of those who hid Anne Frank and her family. "Number the Stars" by Lois Lowrey is another example of those who really stood against the nazis - not just privatley with words - but with actions even if they were in secret.
i totally agree. i think that if more people had taken action, there most definitely would have been less killings. i heard a question today, I don't necessarily agree with it, but it is something to think about:
why did no one attempt to assassinate hitler? people only assassinate the people who do good things? MLK?
What a great conversation going on here! In answer to your question, Sarah, someone DID try to assassinate Hitler-- a colossal failure, but an attempt nonetheless. See http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/20/newsid_3505000/3505014.stm
for an article about it (sorry, I'm not sure how to get this to hyperlink in the comment section, so copy and paste!). I think the attempts on the "good guys" stay with us more, cut us more deeply, but oftentimes dictators and other "bad guys" do contend with assassination attempts-- and some don't live through them. Maybe they are fewer due to the fact that people fear them to such an extreme that it overcomes the hatred necessary to kill them. What do you think?
That's it for me tonight...
:)
Mrs. P
Post a Comment