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All the Light We Cannot See

Anthony Doerr

Start date: January 1, 2015

Finish date: January 31, 2015

Discussion: Bloggers Unite Book Club

Why we're reading this: January 2015 - Bloggers Unite Book Club Selection
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What Members Thought

Apr 12, 2015 Harvee Lau rated it it was amazing

The experiences of two young people in WWII - a blind French girl in Brittany and a young German orphan - whose lives are affected by WWII in a dramatic and a suspenseful way.

I could sympathize with the blind girl and read with interest how she went about her days, how she adjusted to being blind but still able to get around and even to solve a mystery and survive the war. Her interactions with the young soldier and his ordeals during war were also riveting.

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Feb 13, 2021 Blodeuedd Finland marked it as dnf

I was bored, so I am moving on

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Jul 20, 2015 Steve Lindahl rated it it was amazing

All the Light We Cannot See is a World War II novel primarily about two people. The first is Marie-Laure LeBlanc, a blind French girl who grew up in Paris and moved, with her father to Saint-Malo, a port city in northwest France that was bombed by American and British forces as part of the invasion of France. The second is Werner Pfennig, a German orphan who has an amazing ability to understand the workings of radios as well as an ability to track down transmitters, a skill that is important to All the Light We Cannot See is a World War II novel primarily about two people. The first is Marie-Laure LeBlanc, a blind French girl who grew up in Paris and moved, with her father to Saint-Malo, a port city in northwest France that was bombed by American and British forces as part of the invasion of France. The second is Werner Pfennig, a German orphan who has an amazing ability to understand the workings of radios as well as an ability to track down transmitters, a skill that is important to the German army. The idea of a book about an orphan and a blind child on opposite sides of WWII sounds as if it might turn sappy, but it never does. Anthony Doerr never lets his characters feel sorry for themselves, disappointed at times, but never sorry.

I didn't understand Doerr's choice to tell the story in a non-chronological way, or I should say partially chronological. For a good portion of the novel the book was moving between three stories. The first two took place at the same time, the stories of Marie-Laure and Werner as children and teenagers. The third was Werner's story, set when he was a little older and part of the war effort. It was easy enough to follow these story lines and the chapters were often dated, so this didn't bother me. But I didn't understand the advantage, either. The one time the odd trajectory of the story did bother me was late in the book when a sergeant-major is looking for a house. From the perspective of the reader he shows up at the house before he discovers where it is.

What I loved about this book were the two main characters, especially Werner. He observed the people around him and admired the ones who deserved his admiration. His actions grew out of the type of person he was and the situations in which he was placed. I also loved the way Doerr added interest to his plot through the wartime setting, the curse on a jewel, and the use of radios as both weapons and lifelines.

Steve Lindahl – author of Motherless Soul and White Horse Regressions ...more

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Aug 05, 2020 Kay added it

Wonderfully evoked atmosphere of isolation and longing. Also loved the way the desolation of the young man on the island was treated and the stories he conjured up to keep himself going. I thnk this book told me to always talk about sadness and longing and encourage others the same way.

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Oct 27, 2022 Susan rated it it was amazing

I had heard about The Lights We Cannot See since it was released. Our book club discussed the book. So I knew I wanted to eventually read it because I didn't attend.

I think I may have pre-judged the book. Because I attempted to read his new book. I don't read dystopia, science fiction, fantasy. So I already pre-judged.

At the same time reading, The Light I Cannot See. I was watching Ken Burns documentary, US and the Holocaust. I think it was a bad idea. I was mixing up the program and the book ...more

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