Jonathan Safran Foer chose Oskar's age with great care, as he falls somewhere between adulthood and childhood in the preadolescent limbo that is so often ignored in novels told from the points of view of children. Having been around Oskar's age when we underwent the tragedy that was 9-11, there are several aspects from personal experience that I can compare to Oskar's reaction, even though Oskar is such an elaborate and individual character.
In handling the whole of an American tragedy like 9-11, Oskar exhibits somewhat selfish reactions and expressions to the grief that has struck his family, as the protagonist seems to only be affected by things that directly impact the character. Where most of the narrative revolves around events taking place post-9-11, all the stories and disheartening affliction held by his mom or his grandma, he only thinks about his father, the key his father left behind and how that will make Oskar feel better, as well as the his mother's grief nonsatisfactory. Often, he seems like a brat and we have a difficult time gathering his insensitivity and inability to gauge human emotion with success, read facial expressions, etc.
However, when thinking about my own reaction to 9-11 at that age, I know that the comprehension of the whole event, of terrorism, or grief, or of any aspect of the tragedy was near-impossible. I'm pretty sure that the two things I felt most unsettled by on the day of 9-11 was the fact that I got to miss school and the fact that my sister's birthday party was canceled. It's a matter of perspective and a critique in how we view tragedies selfishly, whether we want to admit it or not.
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