All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

This was a really long book and it took me about 3 days to read it. I don’t think I’ve spent this long with a book in a while; I’m used to getting through a book relatively quickly. I’m happy to say that this novel kept me engaged the entire time and I really enjoyed reading this historical fiction. So here is my review.

Marie – Laure has been blind since the age of 6. But her father hasn’t let that stop her from becoming independent. He made a miniature model of their neighbourhood for her to run her hands through for practice and he would take her with him to the museum where he worked every day. When the Nazis invade her hometown, she and her father flee to Saint – Malo with a priceless jewel in their possession.

In a mining town in Germany, a young orphan named Werner is trying to make the best of his life along with his younger sister, Jutta. When his mathematical abilities and his technical skills are discovered, he is sent to an elite school to be trained as one of the Fuhrer’s soldiers. What starts off as a passion for radios soon becomes a career that he dreads as Werner is forced to locate transmissions and help capture the Fuhrer’s enemies.

Neither of them is prepared for the events that bring them into each others’ lives.

So I didn’t really know how to end this review without giving everything away completely so pardon my abrupt ending. I really enjoyed this novel and I loved experiencing the story through both views. There are so many books that are based on world war II, so much so that it is hard to find one that is unique. I found just that in this novel. It was eloquently written and the emotions were so raw and beautiful. The loss of childhood innocence was profound and the way that the characters ended up having to grow up was tragic and amazing all at once. I truly loved this book and I would recommend this to anyone who loves historical fiction.

Happy reading ~ 

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