What is Bruno's relationship like with his parents in The Boy in the Striped Pajamas?

Bruno
has a complex relationship with his parents in Boyne's novel . Bruno's
mother is portrayed as a compassionate, caring woman who is tender toward her children and tries
to soothe Bruno and Gretel's concerns about moving to "Out-With" (Auschwitz). Despite
the tenderness and sympathetic nature of Bruno's mother, she becomes impatient and strict with
him when he begins to ask too many questions.

Once their family moves to
Out-With, Bruno's mother becomes overwhelmed by the entire situation, begins to drink heavily,
and spends significant time with the young, attractive Lieutenant Kotler. Bruno's mother becomes
increasingly distant and does not realize that he has been sneaking out of the home to spend
time with Shmuel. Bruno is not completely open with his mother, and their lack of communication
suggests that they are not that close.

Bruno has a tense, complex
relationship with his father, who is the Commandant of the Auschwitz concentration camp.
Although Bruno's father cares deeply about him, he is strict toward his son and spends the
majority of his time engaged in his work. Bruno is not allowed in his father's office, cannot
ask him in-depth questions, and must obey his directives. Bruno's father seems more concerned
about his job than he does raising his son. Bruno's father is also dismissive of his son and is
unaware of Bruno's everyday activities.

Similar to his mother, Bruno does not
confide in his father and keeps his secrets to himself. Overall, Bruno has loving parents but
does not spend a significant amount of time with them and does not seem to be their number one
priority.