Author(s): John Boyne

Fiction | Vijeta's Book Talkers

All the Broken Places is John Boyne's masterful sequel to his classic bestseller, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, taking a character from that novel on a journey to a place she never goes - the past. Through her story, Boyne explores the aftermath of the war and the effects of a lifetime of guilt. 1946. Three years after a cataclysmic event which tore their lives apart, a mother and daughter flee Poland for Paris, shame and fear at their heels, not knowing how hard it is to escape your past. Nearly eighty years later, Gretel Fernsby lives a life that is a far cry from her traumatic childhood. When a couple moves into the flat below her in her London mansion block, it should be nothing more than a momentary inconvenience. However, the appearance of their nine-year-old son Henry brings back memories she would rather forget. Faced with a choice between her own safety and his, Gretel is taken back to a similar crossroads she encountered long ago. Back then, her complicity dishonoured her life, but to interfere now could risk revealing the secrets she has spent a lifetime protecting.

CONSTANT READER STAFF REVIEW: VIJETA

I actually wasn't the biggest fan of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, so I was quite surprised at how much I enjoyed its sequel; it definitely made its way to one of my favourite reads of 2022. I found Boyne's sophisticated handling of sensitive events to be a thoroughly refreshing addition to WW2 fiction.

This book immediately follows the events of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, and the fall of the Third Reich. Our (anti)heroine, Gretel, is reeling the loss of her little brother, and battling a new world in which all conceptions of her former life have been torn up. Grappling with her father's horror past, and her own involvement in the Nazi genocide, Gretel moves from country to country to understand herself and the exact magnitude of one of humanity's worst crimes.

This book is challenging and uncomfortable at times, but nevertheless a realistic portrayal of how we bear the weight of strong guilt and prejudice, and what ultimately comes next. A must-read for adults who enjoy historical fiction, and wonder how a family rebuilds after committing such crimes. Note: this book can totally be read as a stand-alone.