The Boy in the Striped Pajamas Comprehension Questions and Answers
Comprehension questions and answers for Chapters 1 to 4
QUESTION: Who was in Bruno’s family?
ANSWER: Bruno’s family consisted of Mother, Father, Bruno, and Gretel. Gretel was 12, and Bruno was 9 at the opening of the story. Their maid was Maria, Lars was their waiter, and they had a cook, who Bruno referred to as Cook. Bruno saw all these people as part of his family.
QUESTION: Why did Bruno’s family have to move?
ANSWER: Father was given a new job.
QUESTION: Why didn’t Bruno want to move?
ANSWER: Bruno had lived in his old house since he was young, and he knew every nook and cranny in it. He liked exploring. His current house was a great place for exploring. It had five levels. Bruno walked to school and had three best friends. His father’s parents, his grandparents, also lived in Berlin.
QUESTION: Describe Bruno’s new house.
ANSWER: Bruno’s new house was three levels, counting the basement. The front faced a forest. The back had pavement and a bench. Then there was a barbed-wire fence surrounding small huts, smoke stacks, soldiers, and a lot of people wearing striped pajamas.
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Click here or on the cover to learn more about Simple Literature’s full curriculum for The Boy in the Striped Pajamas at TPT.
Comprehension questions and answers for Chapters 5 to 7
QUESTION: Why didn’t Bruno like Lieutenant Kotler?
ANSWER: Lieutenant Kotler acted self-important and arrogant. He was also unfriendly. Bruno didn’t like the way Lieutenant Kotler talked to and ordered Pavel around. He was harsh and mean to Pavel.
QUESTION: Who helped Bruno when he fell off his tire swing? What did you learn about this person?
ANSWER: Pavel, who was ordered to help Bruno get an old tire, helped Bruno after he fell off the tire swing. Pavel was a doctor who now worked in the kitchen of Bruno’s house.
QUESTION: How did Bruno’s mother react to what happened to Bruno?
ANSWER: Mother was concerned for Bruno and was glad Pavel helped him. But then she told Pavel that if anyone asked, she would tell them that she helped Bruno instead of Pavel helping him.
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Comprehension questions and answers for Chapters 8 to 10
QUESTION: Why didn’t Bruno get to see his grandparents before his family left Berlin?
ANSWER: At Christmas, after eating and helping Bruno and Gretel perform a play, Bruno’s grandmother told his father that she was disappointed in him and what he was doing. She left their party upset. Bruno didn’t see her again. The story implies that there was a rift between Grandmother and Father.
QUESTION: How did Bruno choose to disobey his parents?
ANSWER: Bruno chose to explore Out-With along the barbed-wire fence. His parents had told him that he wasn’t allowed to do that. But he was bored and didn’t have friends. Also, he wanted to be an explorer, and the only thing worth exploring was the fence behind his home.
QUESTION: Where did Bruno’s exploration lead him?
ANSWER: After walking along the fence for over an hour, Bruno found Shmuel, a 9-year-old with Bruno’s same birthday. Shmuel wore striped PJs. Bruno also learned that Out-With was in Poland, which means Bruno was no longer in Germany.
© 2024 Simple Literature
Click here or on the cover to learn more about Simple Literature’s full curriculum for The Boy in the Striped Pajamas at TPT.
Comprehension questions and answers for Chapters 11 to 13
QUESTION: How did Bruno feel about the Fury and his companion Eva?
ANSWER: Bruno disliked the Fury. He was a short, rude man. His companion, Eva, was a tall, beautiful woman. She took the time to be nice to Bruno and Gretel. Bruno liked her.
QUESTION: Where did Shmuel live before being put behind the barbed-wire fence?
ANSWER: Shmuel lived with his parents and his brother, Joseph, above his father’s watch shop in Poland.
QUESTION: What happened to Shmuel’s family after the Nazis entered Poland?
ANSWER: Shmuel’s family had to wear armbands with the Star of David on them. Then a few months later, they had to move to a place called Cracow. Soldiers built high walls around Cracow so Shmuel’s family and others couldn’t leave. They lived in one room with another family. There were eleven people in that one room. One of the boys there, Luka, liked to hit Shmuel. Then trucks took them to a train that took them to the place behind the barbed-wire fence.
QUESTION: What didn’t Lieutenant Kotler want to talk about at dinner? What angered him?
ANSWER: Lieutenant Kotler didn’t want to talk about why his father left Germany in 1938 to teach literature in Switzerland. When Pavel dropped wine in the lieutenant’s lap, Kotler was unreasonably angry with and mean to Pavel.
© 2024 Simple Literature
Click here or on the cover to learn more about downloading the full curriculum for Simple Literature’s first four chapters of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas FREE at TPT.
Comprehension questions and answers for Chapters 14 to 16
QUESTION: What did Bruno do in his kitchen that helped Shmuel? What did Bruno do that hurt Shmuel?
ANSWER: Bruno was surprised to find Shmuel in his kitchen. He forced his friend to eat some of his family’s food. But when Lieutenant Kotler caught Shmuel eating food, Bruno didn’t tell the man that he and Shmuel were friends.
QUESTION: What did Bruno do to make things right with Shmuel? How did Shmuel respond?
ANSWER: At first, Shmuel didn’t show up at the fence. When he did, Bruno kept apologizing until Shmuel understood how much Bruno regretted his actions. Shmuel responded by pulling up the fence and shaking Bruno’s hand.
QUESTION: Why did Bruno tell Gretel that he had an imaginary friend?
ANSWER: Bruno accidentally told Gretel about Shmuel. To cover his error, Bruno said that Shmuel was his imaginary friend. By making him imaginary, Bruno was able to talk about his friend. He preferred Gretel’s condescension to giving away his secret.
QUESTION: What changed about Bruno’s physical appearance?
ANSWER: Gretel and Bruno discovered they had lice. To kill the lice, Gretel had to go through a shampoo and washing routine. Bruno started to do this, but then Father just shaved his head. To Bruno, he now looked a lot more like Shmuel.
© 2024 Simple Literature
Click here or on the cover to learn more about Simple Literature’s full curriculum for The Boy in the Striped Pajamas at TPT.
Comprehension questions and answers for Chapters 17 to 20
QUESTION: What did Mother want? How did Father respond?
ANSWER: Mother wanted to return to Berlin with the children. She finally convinced Father. He talked to Bruno and Gretel about their leaving.
QUESTION: What made it possible for Bruno to explore Shmuel’s side of the fence?
ANSWER: Bruno had his hair shaved and looked like the others on Shmuel’s side of the fence. It stopped raining, and Mother took a nap. Shmuel got a pair of striped pajamas for Bruno. And the boys were able to turn up the fence so Bruno could slide under it.
QUESTION: What did the boys do once they were on Shmuel’s side of the fence?
ANSWER: At first, Bruno and Shmuel searched for Shmuel’s missing father. They didn’t find him, and Bruno didn’t like what he saw. Just before Bruno left, the boys were caught in a crowd, put in a gas chamber, and killed.
© 2024 Simple Literature
Click here or on the cover to learn more about downloading the full curriculum for Simple Literature’s first four chapters of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas FREE at TPT.