All the Light We Cannot See: A Novel

Full disclosure: I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review. I don't know why I waited so long to read Anthony Doerr's All the Light We Cannot See. I've loved his other books—in fact, his 2010 story collection, Memory Wall, was among the best books I read that year, so I know he's a tremendously talented writer. Maybe I hesitated because the book has already begun showing up on a number of year-end "best" lists, and lately I've had a bit of a disconnect between those the critics label as best of the year and those of which I'm most enamored. Well, I needn't have worried, because Doerr's latest is as good, and beautifully written, as I hoped it might be. In the early 1940s, the world is on the brink of war. Marie-Laure is a 12-year-old girl living in Paris with her father, a locksmith at the Museum of Natural History. Although Marie-Laure went blind at the age of six, she has a tremendous thirst for knowledge and a passion about the world around her, particularly the natural world. Ever-protective of his daughter, Marie-Laure's father built a model of their Paris neighborhood so she can navigate the streets and always find her way home. Meanwhile, in a German mining town, young Werner Pfennig is growing up with his sister, Jutta, in an orphanage. When the two discover a radio, it opens up a world of dreams and information. Werner also discovers his ability to repair and build radios, as well as his ability to grasp complicated mathematical and scientific concepts. This intelligence catches the interest of a Nazi officer, who sees that Werner is enrolled in an elite Hitler Youth school, where the fervor for perfection and rooting out inferiority begins to turn him into a person he doesn't recognize. As war closes in, Marie-Laure and her father flee Paris and head to the seaside town of Saint-Malo, where her eccentric great-uncle Etienne lives. Etienne has never been the same since the first World War, and he is unprepared for just how profoundly his life—and the lives of those around him—will be affected by Marie-Laure's presence, as well as the town's resistance to the Nazi occupation. And Werner finds himself on the front lines, as he is part of a team tracking down those using radios to subvert the Nazis. Werner and Marie-Laure's lives will intersect in a profound way, both when they are at one of their weakest moments. And this encounter will have an indelible impact on the lives of many for years to come. "To men like that, time was a surfeit, a barrel they watched slowly drain. When really, he thinks, it's a glowing puddle you carry in your hands; you should spend all your energy protecting it. Fighting for it. Working so hard not to spill one single drop." This is an exquisite, wonderfully told story. The characters are tremendously vivid and came to life for me, and I found myself fully immersed in what was happening to them. Although the book unfolds slowly, I was never bored, and although I had some suspicions about how certain events would be resolved, I felt some suspense at what would happen. Doerr is truly so talented, and although the book's switching back forth between two points in time sometimes made me take a moment to re-orient myself to where I was in the plot, I enjoyed this book so, so much. If you don't need a book to move at breakneck speed, but you want a story to savor, pick up All the Light We Cannot See. This is one of those books I could see as a fantastic movie as well, but the book is so worth reading.

This is not my usual read, but I was curious after seeing it everywhere, and figured I can take a break from my YA and fantasy reads. It is a book filled with beautiful prose and imagery and poignant emotions. It’s a book that you have to take time to savor and enjoy and not rush through, and that’s exactly what I did. The book follows two children, Marie-Laure, a blind girl in France, and Werner, an orphan in Germany. Marie lives with her father in Paris in the 1930s before the war began and goes with her father to the National Museum where her father works as a locksmith. They had to leave Paris when the war began and went to Saint Malo, where her great-uncle lives. There is no parallel to the beauty of Doerr’s writing and how he brought the world alive for a blind girl. Marie’s story is heartbreaking and is a story of a child who had to grow up too early. It’s a similar story to other survivors who at the end of war never have closure, never find out what happened to her family or friends. Werner was an orphan in a mining town in Germany, along with his sister Jutta. Werner was a natural with radios and wavelengths. Some would say he was a genius, and that was how he escaped being sent to work in the mines. One official discovered his brilliance and sent him to military school. I don’t read a lot of WWII novels often, so it was depressing even see the German side of the story. Yes, they did horrible things, but from Werner’s side, you see the brainwashing of the German population, starting with young boys. Anyone that did not fit in with the ideology was eliminated or worse. Werner’s story is an example of that. He tried so hard to fit in and had to do some horrible things, and I think he could never forgive himself. I’m not saying all Germans deserve sympathy, but Werner was just as much a victim to the regime as the people of the conquered countries. The story jumped between two different timelines. It began with August 1944 then jumped all the way back to 1934 to trace the stories of these two kids. Each chapter is short and concise, and I think that’s also what made it easier for me to stop and put it down and to really take the time to enjoy it. There’re parts near the end that was very unsatisfactory, when Marie and Werner finally meet. I wish the author had done more there. I can see that the way Doerr presented it was realistic and in line with the overall tone of the story. Still, it broke my heart and left my wanting for more. Overall, I enjoyed it for a book that’s usually out of my genre and am glad I experienced it.

A book that carries you away to another world in a different time as only excellent books can. Must read.

mi libro que quería leer y resulto buenisismo.

I'm not normally a fan of prize-winning novels. I have to confess that I often find them tedious, pompous and unapproachable, which is likely a failing in me and not the novel, but I overcame my resistance to reading this one upon the recommendation of other readers and I was hooked from page one. "All the Light we Cannot See" tells two separate but converging stories set in Germany and Occupied France during World War Two. Marie-Laure, a young girl blind since the age of six and her father, who is the locksmith at the Natural History Museum in Paris, depart for the safety of St-Malo, a walled city on France's Brittany coast, carrying only the clothes on their backs and a secret cursed treasure. Werner is a German orphan whose fate is to work in the coal mines feeding the Nazi war machine as soon as he turns 15, but his skill with radio sees him indoctrinated into the Hitler Youth at 14 and a career with the German army locating and destroying Resistance transceivers. Their paths collide in June of 1944 during the American shelling of the city. I loved this book. Doerr writes with beauty and clarity, and I could see the novel unfolding in my head. His characters are three dimensional and inspire empathy in the reader (this reader anyway). I read the final third of the book in a single sitting, heart in my mouth, eschewing all other tasks so that I could find out what happened to the characters in the book. Conversely I didn't want it to end because I was engrossed in the story. I almost want to buy the physical book, just so that I can hold it in my hands. I will be reading this one again for sure, and seeking out Doerr's other literary offerings. This is by far the best book I've read in many years (and I read a lot). Read it! But make sure you have plenty of time on your hands. It's a tough one to put down.

It was a kindle, so no problem. Bloody good read.

Doerr's novel is set in two countries, Germany and France, and it spans the period before and during WWII, moving back and forth in time and switching points of view among several characters. I loved the two main protagonists, a blind French girl and a gifted German boy. Their lives converge brilliantly at Saint Malo at the end of the war. The novel is deeply moving without being sentimental. The writer managed to make me understand what might push the Germans to follow Hitler, and at the same time, the novel is deeply critical of totalitarianism. The novel is richly intertextual, with many cultural references to books, music, natural history etc. So it's a challenging and worthwhile read.