It’s the 1940’s in Germany and to his disappointment Bruno (the main character) finds the family maid packing his things saying they’ll be moving. His father says he got a promotion and their family would need to move closer to the location of his new job. Once they arrive Bruno is also disappointed to see how much worse the house is. It’s smaller, very isolated, and is covered all around by a huge fence. Bruno pleads his parents to move back with no effect causing him to be even more upset with the move. He tells his sister, Gretel, how much he hates moving and she refers to the place as “out-with”. She thinks it means out-with the previous people living there but what she refers to as “out-with” really means Auschwitz. They stare out of Bruno’s window and see a family supposedly playing behind the fence of their house. His sister thinks their on a farm but Bruno disagrees given that there are no crops or animals. Gretel then leaves and as soon as she does a group of children come out of a hut and they seem to be wearing weird striped jumpsuits that Bruno believes are pajamas.