All the Light We Cannot See
This novel follows the lives of two young teens through their survival of WWII on the European front. One is a blind French girl who is trying to hide a precious treasure the Germans are after while she is still participating in the resistance. The other is an intelligent German boy who is forcefully swept up in the armed forces in order to survive.
The first Doerr book I read was a collection of short stories for a book club a few summers ago. I remember feeling underwhelmed after finishing and decided I didn’t really love Anthony Doerr’s writing style. Since then, I have often found myself thinking about those tales, and mulling them over. At the beginning of this book I also felt like there was no pizzazz to the storyline; there isn’t a lot of action, or an unrequited love. But then a small ember started to sit inside my chest and the warmth grew as the story progressed. About half way through the book it kind of hit me…these are stories that people can truly relate to, no unbelievable conspiracy, no walking away from explosions, all these characters could have been us or someone we loved if we had lived during the same time period. As each character’s narrative winds down I thought “that probably actually happened to someone during the war.” This is what Doerr gives the world, fictional tales that really aren’t so fictional. He gives you relatable characters that you bond with and think back on fondly for years to come.
Now I can say I’m a fan of this author and I recommend this novel to anyone who likes historical fiction, Night by Elie Wiesel, or The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank.
Malia's Pizza Rating
Escargot pizza