John Boyne's first novel for young adults, "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas," is a fine read for adults also. At the book's start, the main character Bruno makes a discovery. He has come home from school to find the family's maid standing in his bedroom, pulling all his belongings out of the wardrobe and packing them in four large wooden crates, even the things he'd hidden at the back and were nobody else's business. Bruno's father is an officer with the Nazis. The family is moving to Poland, near a concentration camp. Of course, Bruno has no idea what is going on, but he is made uneasy by the site of hundreds of people (imprisoned Jews) wearing those striped pajamas alluded to in the tile. Curiosity about his dad's job sends Bruno to the camp, where he meets a Jewish boy who happens to have the same birthdate. A friendship - a tragic one, of course - ensues. Dubliner John Boyne has written a terrifying, yet moving book for all readers.

($15.95 / 224 pages / Random House)