I picked this up as part of a book club with a friend. 

“All the Broken Places” follows Gretel, a ninety-one-year-old woman who is living out her final years in arguable comfort. Gretel refuses to talk about her escape from Germany and the Nazis back when she was twelve-years-old, and no one, not even her son knows who she truly is or anything about her life before she arrived in London. Gretel’s father was a commandant of one of the most notorious extermination camps. Although she was just a young girl at the time, Gretel had some idea about what was actually going on, but she never tried to do anything to stop it. In present day, a new family moves into Gretel’s building and she becomes friendly with the young son, Henry. Gretel witnesses something disturbing one night, and is now faced with the decision to once again turn a blind eye, or to try to stop any more harm from occurring, even if that means revealing her past. 

This was such a powerful, moving, and difficult novel to read. This book is the sequel to “The Boy in the Stripped Pajamas”, and it was such a treat to be able to get more of that story’s fallout. However, because of the content matter, this was definitely a difficult story to read, especially because it is based on absolutely devastatingly true events. I think, in part, what makes this story so powerful is that it could be real and actually follow real people. 

This novel alternates chapters so that we are receiving Gretel’s story in the past, as well as in the present simultaneously. I really enjoyed this type of story telling because as we are reading how Gretel escaped Germany, we know that she did, and that she seemed to have lived a very full life. The mystery is in the details, and this really kept me engaged with the story. 

I think a huge theme in this story is personal responsibility. Gretel was only twelve-years-old when the Nazis were murdering people, and it was her own father that was greatly responsible for the deaths of thousands. She knew something was going on in the camp, but she never knew the details, so, does that make her responsible? If we think she is responsible, should she be held accountable? I think this is such an interesting and nuanced question because I do not have an answer. Throughout her life, Gretel meets many people who when they discover her connection to the Nazis believe she is just as much at fault for what happened, and she should be held accountable. She is held, sometimes violently, to exceptionally high standards. But is this the “right” answer? Could she have feasibly done something? How can we forgive the countries that aided Germany, but we cannot extend the same grace to the children of Germany? The bottom line is that Gretel was a young girl, and even if she tried to do something to save people, she realistically would not have succeeded in dismantling the Nazi army. Were her struggles in life as arduous as those who lost their lives at the hands of the Nazis? No, but Gretel’s life suffered greatly because of the decisions made by her father. 

Gretel is an obviously flawed character, but one thing I can say about her is she undeniably has resilience. Gretel escaped terrible situation after terrible situation, and even after she was beaten down time and time again, she pulls herself up and continues to live. Even after escaping Germany, her life is far from easy, and she is forced to face a lot of difficulty and tragedy alone. Even through this, she never seeks to talk about herself or her life, and she does not seek pity from those closest to her. She is just a woman who overcame a terrible past. 

I really loved Henry as a character. Henry is a quiet boy who is going through a difficult time at home. I think Henry was a great modern day parallel to Gretel’s brother, and I think that is, in part, why Gretel was so drawn to him. Henry’s father is mean and power hungry, and Gretel, being accustomed to such toxic masculinity, can see through the family’s delicate facade. Henry is the catalyst that gets Gretel to acknowledge her past in a new way, and I really loved him for it. 

This story ends in what I think is a shocking, but expected way, and I loved it. Gretel makes a bold decision that I think really highlights who she truly is as a person. It felt like she was finally able to redeem herself and her character, and prove to all those people who hated her just because of who her father was that she has more goodness in her than they assumed. 

This is an obviously difficult novel to read, but if you can handle the content matter, I think this is an exceptional story that will make you reflect on human behavior. 

 As a follow on from The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, I found this book a reflective puzzle of Gretel's (Bruno's older sister) post war struggle as she bounces from country to country to evade her past.
It certainly managed to evoke emotion and make you feel for her character as a slightly obtuse child who was clearly vaguely aware of the happenings at the concentration camp and her father's involvement but also treated horribly by people who discovered her part like she was just as culpable as the executioners, a tall task from a 12 year old girl.

This book, in truth, probably could have not been written to little detriment of The Boy in Striped Pyjamas as is focused on basically hiding from the immense 'guilt' she feels yet continuing a life of little friends, interactions and meticulous planning to the point of obsession yet is understandable in her ripe age of a 90 odd year old woman that she would be set in her ways and reflective to an intense amount.

It is interesting that she is given the role of

an executioner in murdering her neighbour's husband

like a poetic justification that justice will not be served as domestic abuse or any form of hidden crime like the Nazis with the hidden sympathisers disappearing after the war and her relationship with her next door neighbour  being

her long lost daughter

feels decidedly too planned and perfect. Also, I fail to see how giving Heidi a life where she is struggling with dementia at 60 and has had such a comfortable existence bankrolled by her parents is a good idea in the book's graces. I feel the choice of names in the book feels grandiose at times as well as she mocks Oberon but then her son is called Caden which feels unusual also.

While her quest of facing her demons and dealing with having a relationship with a younger boy similar to her brother is interesting to read and interpret, I can also understand how it can be triggering for readers as well with the suicide attempt and victimising of herself making the Nazis appear somewhat capable of redemption. It feels topical as reports of French resistance murders post 1945 have been unearthed calling into question ethics on the side of the Allies and whether it is justified to harbour resentment and punish anyone heavily involved and indoctrinated by a regime that killed so many or forgiveness should be given to women and children especially? Boyne himself seems to point to the idea of sympathising with those indoctrinated but it is questionable to what extent people should be given leniency and could be triggering for those who have suffered with racism or antisemitism. 

A must read for anyone who read and enjoyed The Boy in the Striped Pajamas!