Bruno Hoess: Bruno is the nine year old son of a Nazi Commandant. He was born on April 15th, 1934 in Berlin, Germany and has a sister named Gretel. Bruno has brown hair and is constantly made fun of because he is short for his age. He loves exploring and wants to be an explorer when he grows up. Bruno is very upset when his family moves to a place called “Out-With” because he has no friends there. He goes exploring along the fence outside his new house and finds a boy named Shmuel. The two soon become friends.
Gretel Hoess: Gretel is Bruno's twelve-year-old sister who loves to play with dolls and rearrange them on her shelf. Gretel is very rude, sarcastic and bossy, especially to her brother Bruno. She tries to act more maturely than she actually is which annoys her brother very much. He thinks she is a “hopeless case.” Gretel always follows the rules and believes almost everything anyone tells her. She doesn't have any friends at Out-With so she spends her time talking with Lieutenant Kotler .
Shmuel: Shmuel is a eight-year-old Jewish boy who was captured by the Germans. He is The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. Shmuel was sent to a concentration camp called “Out-With.” He is a quiet, frail, and very lonely person who spends most of his time sitting at the camp fence. Shmuel meets Bruno and they become friends.
Ralph Hoess: He is the father of Bruno and Gretel. Ralph is commandant of Out-With, the concentration camp outside the house they are living in. He likes to stay in his office and work. Ralph is very patriotic and does all his work for his country, Germany.
Elsa Hoess: Elsa is Ralphs wife. She is a very sophisticated, caring woman who despises her husband's job. Elsa is very upset with how the Nazis treat the Jews. She wants to take Bruno and Gretel back to Berlin because she thinks that Out-With is no place to raise young children. She also has a brief affair with Lieutenant Kotler.
Maria: Maria is a maid at Bruno's home. Maria respects Bruno's Father because he paid for her mother's healthcare.
Pavel: Pavel is a kind Jewish man who works as a waiter and chef at Bruno's house. Although he is often treated with disrespect, he never complains. Pavel's only friend in the house is Bruno. Pavel cares for Bruno when he is hurt and talks with him even though he is not allowed to. Pavel is a weak man who grows weaker every day. Eventually he becomes so weak that he drops a bottle of wine on Lieutenant Kotler, who then drags Pavel out of the room and kills him.
Lieutenant Kotler: He is 19 years old and very full of himself. He enjoys talking with Gretel, and Bruno is often annoyed by Kotler's way of talking to him with superiority. Kotler is abusive to the help, including Pavel, beating him. Kotler gets into an affair with Bruno's mother, and is eventually transferred to a different post after Bruno's father discovers this.
