With Quarantine going on and endless amounts of time, my dad had convinced me to join a book club with him. It was nothing fancy, just him, my grandmother and I all reading the same books as an excuse to talk together. The second book we had decided to read was All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, my dad had recommended it to us not because it told an amazing story (which it did), but because of the authors writing style. I know, another historical fiction book about World War II, but trust me, this story is amazing.
The story follows the life of two characters both living in very different lifestyles and their journey through World War 2. It starts off in 1934 with Marie-Laure, a six year old blind girl living in Paris, France with her father, a locksmith at a local museum. The second character, Werner is an eight year old boy, living in an
orphanage in Germany with his younger sister. He is exceptionally bright and has a magic touch when it comes to radios. In 1940 Germany invades France, forcing Marie-Laure and her father to relocate in a town called Saint-Malo where her great uncle, a World War 1 veteran lives. Back in Germany, Werner scored a spot in a prestige boarding school that teaches Nazi values. One teacher realizes his skill for radios and math, and changes Werner's age so he could start working out in the field, finding illegal broadcasting. He eventually ends up in Saint-Malo around the same time that Allied forces start attacking the town. Both Werner and Marie-Laure get stuck in Saint-Malo while it was being attacked. In the middle of all the chaos they run into each other and have a short interaction before parting. The story ends around 60 years later where the author ties all the lose ends together.
Like I mentioned, this author has an amazing writing style. He incorporates a lot of unique similes like "Marie-Laure looks up from her book and believes she can smell gasoline under the wind. As if a great river of machinery is steaming slowly, irrevocably, towards her" and "One hundred children passing sleek and interchangeable in their white uniforms like livestock before the eyes of the examiner". Throughout the story the author sprinkles similes in creating a rich imaginary text.
This is not a fast, actioned packed story, and focuses more on the life the two characters follow throughout a ten year period. That being said the author still finds ways to fill it with suspense. One of my favorite aspects of the book is how the author incorporates chapters that provide glimpse of the future. The more you read of the book the more you learn about this final scene and what caused it. This book is more of a heavy read, as you might expect from a World War II book. If death is a sensitive subject for you then I would recommend not reading this book. Overall I would say that this is a great book to read, especially if you are looking for a longer intense read.
- Sophie A.
