The story weaves backwards and forwards with a rich caste of characters both simple and complex, evil or kind, - there are greedy traitors, cruel psychopaths, heroes and heroines on both sides all told with detail that makes the scenes come alive. In another world in Germany, an orphan boy, Werner, grows up with his younger sister, Jutta, both enchanted by a crude radio Werner finds. The main problem for me was just as the excitement of the action was getting you hooked it suddenly changed to a different time frame. Beautifully written I kept thinking that I must start reading it as I must surely be missing out on a very good read (as it certainly is according to the number of five star reviews on Amazon). Please try againSorry, we failed to record your vote. He becomes a master at building and fixing radios, a talent that wins him a place at an elite and brutal military academy and, ultimately, makes him a highly specialized tracker of the Resistance. The subject of WW2 is hardly a new one and neither is that of the struggles and difficulties of individuals living through it but Anthony Doerr has found a completely original way to explore it with wonderfully unusual characters and deep sympathy and understanding. Please try againSorry, we failed to record your vote. I began reading the book 7th August 2018. Any suggestions?Hi Amy! I kept checking to see how many pages I had left to wade through. This book is RICH in detail. Want to write masterfully? When she is six, she goes blind, and her father builds her a model of their neighborhood, every house, every manhole, so she can memorize it with her fingers and navigate the real streets with her feet and cane. It is wonderfully written with some stunningly beautiful passages. All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr This book has the most hauntingly beautiful prose I've ever read. In a mining town in Germany, Werner Pfennig, an orphan, grows up with his younger sister, enchanted by a crude radio they find that brings them news and stories from places they have never seen or imagined. Werner is forced to join the Nazis even though he doesn’t believe in the cause and he’s concerned after things he’s seen and done, there’s no hope for his humanity. It is however, deceptively long, if you are reading electronically you will plough through 10 or 15 chapters (they are extremely short) and think you are flying through only to discover you have only moved on 3 or 4%. Nevertheless, well worth reading. Please try againSorry, we failed to record your vote.

I came across this novel accidentally and it's one of the most moving and exciting I've read for a long time. If you go the book club questions article, feel free to type in your thoughts there in the comment section and connect with other readers. Your recently viewed items and featured recommendations Starts with a magic diamond with red fire that is trying to get back to the sea. This is a very well written book but just a little too slow to get going; in fact I was still waiting when it came to an end! As I read this story, over and over I set aside my curiosity about what happens next to slow down, reread, and savor the language. The suspense is heightened - then comes the calm only to be jerked back onto a knife edge! And after that, back to 1940. The language in the book is perhaps one of the most important bits, it is written with such rich and lively details that at times, I could almost see myself in places where Marie-Laure was or where Werner was. But the author also introduces some fantastic characters from Marie-Laure’s great-Uncle Etienne to the housemaid Madame Manec to Werner’s first friend who stood up to the Nazis, Frederick.The Sea of Flames does play a key part in the novel but if you’re worried this means it’s a fantasy, it’s not at all. The story is set in WW2 Europe, mainly France and Germany but also Russia etc. Deftly interweaving the lives of Marie-Laure and Werner, Doerr illuminates the ways, against all odds, people try to be good to one another. The story was just too busy--noisy--for me to pick up something that resonated personally. Highly recommended. The characters were very well depicted and it was easy to read and in my minds eye I could see the characters.A thoughtful book about two young people in WW2 from an original perspectiveReviewed in the United Kingdom on September 9, 2019 Steel yourself, this one really tugs at the heart strings.

Beautifully written, palpable characters, fantastic backdrop. I really liked the nonlinear style because it definitely shows that is leading up to a huge event. Guess the girl and soldier meet up … could not take any more. Exclusive: Netflix and Shawn Levy’s 21 Laps have acquired the rights to Anthony Doerr’s Pulitzer Prize-winning bestseller All The Light We Cannot See to develop into a limited series, Deadline hears. Unfortunately, I was left feeling rather disapointed. All the Light We Cannot See might be the definition of a slow burn read but it’s so worth it as everything comes together in the end. With them they carry what might be the museum’s most valuable and dangerous jewel. Please try againSorry, we failed to record your vote.

Through this first section, Marie-Laure loses her eyesight completely and her father creates a miniature version of their neighborhood so she can be comfortable walking outside.
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