Cloud Cuckoo Land in On The Same Page

Jul 31, 2021 Joy D rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: myths, reviewed, arc, literary-fiction, favorites, science-fiction, environmental, journeys, zzck, 2021-top-50

There are three interrelated storylines held together by a common thread: an ancient (fictional) manuscript by Antonius Diogenes, entitled Cloud Cuckoo Land, which is a picaresque story about a shepherd’s journey to a utopia in the heavens.

Anna lives in an embroidery house in 15th century Constantinople. She is recruited to raid an old library where she finds valuable ancient manuscripts. Omeir lives with his grandfather in a remote region. He and his oxen are conscripted into the Ottoman army There are three interrelated storylines held together by a common thread: an ancient (fictional) manuscript by Antonius Diogenes, entitled Cloud Cuckoo Land, which is a picaresque story about a shepherd’s journey to a utopia in the heavens.

Anna lives in an embroidery house in 15th century Constantinople. She is recruited to raid an old library where she finds valuable ancient manuscripts. Omeir lives with his grandfather in a remote region. He and his oxen are conscripted into the Ottoman army to help pull a large canon for an attack on Constantinople. Anna’s and Omeir’s stories eventually intersect.

Seymour lives in current times in Idaho. He is distraught when a forest that he loves is destroyed in order to construct a housing development. He becomes an environmental activist. Zeno is an amateur translator and a former soldier in the Korean war. He is working with children performing Cloud Cuckoo Land in the local library. Seymour’s and Zeno’s stories converge.

Konstance is on a spaceship traveling to what will become a new human settlement on a remote plant. She becomes trapped in a vault with access to a virtual library. The narratives are woven together in patchwork style. The ancient manuscript plays a role in all five stories. I recently read a book where this approach did not quite work, but here it works beautifully.

The book comes in at around 650 pages and is organized in short chapters. It takes a while for the separate stories to gel, and for the reader to discern how they are interrelated. Doerr’s writing is lively and intelligent. If you have previously read All the Light We Cannot See, do not expect anything remotely similar (except for the writing, which is outstanding).

It involves nested stories and is mixture of myths, historical fiction, science fiction, travel, ethical quandaries, and relationships. It tackles interesting themes: the power of literature to unite people across cultures and time periods, environmentalism, and the human desire to seek utopia. It will appeal to those who enjoy creative, quirky, playful, thought-stimulating stories. I loved it.

I received an advanced reader’s copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley. It is due for publication on September 28, 2021. ...more

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