All the Light We Cannot See

All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Author: Anthony Doerr
Length: 545 pages
Release Date: May 6, 2014
Content Notes: Pulitzer Prize Winning book in 2015, appropriate for YA and adult audiences 


Maria-Lure: “When I lost my sight, Werner, people said I was brave. When my father left, people said I was brave. But it is not bravery; I have no choice. I wake up and live my life. Don't you do the same?” 

Werner: “How do you ever know for certain that you are doing the right thing?” 






I fell in love with the words, phrases, sentences, and passages within this book. The language and descriptions are captivating. The setting of this book, which is France and Germany before and during WWII, drives the characters, the plot, and the problems in this story. The two main characters are Maria-Laure and Werner. Maria-Laure who is blinded at age six lives in Paris and has a happy life with her father who works at The Museum of Natural History until Germany invades France. Before the war, Werner is an orphan who lives with a loving caretaker along with his sister and other orphans in Germany. 


Then the war changes everything for these two children. When Germany invades France, twelve-year-old Maria-Laure and her father flee, mostly on foot, from Paris to Saint-Malo which is about 250 miles away. Her father carries a precious gem from the museum and this valuable gem becomes more-or-less a minor character in the story. In Saint-Malo, they come to live with Maria-Laure’s great uncle Etienne LaBlanc who is “crazy.” However, we readers quickly ascertain that what he truly suffers from is “shell shock” which is the term used for PTSD and WWI soldiers/survivors. Werner is a poor boy who is destined to work in the mines for the war effort. This is a terrible fate for any fourteen-year-old boy, but is an especially horrifying future for Werner because his father was killed in the mines. However, Werner’s competence for fixing and building radios along with his aptitude for triangulating positions of radio signals puts him in one of Hitler’s youth academies. This academy turns out to be a brutal place full of hatred and physical/mental abuse.



What I loved about this book:

Marie-Laure's thoughts about her uncle: “His voice is low and soft, a piece of silk you might keep in a drawer and pull out only on rare occasions, just to feel it between your fingers.” 

I loved the relationship between Marie-Laure and her great-uncle. The tenderness between them made me wish to have an uncle like him in my life. Marie-Laure’s courage and vulnerability gives her uncle the strength and fortitude he needs to triumph over his PTSD episodes. 

Question posed to Uncle Etienne LaBlanc “Don’t you want to be alive before you die?” 

I also loved getting a glimpse into the French Resistance that occurred during WWII. In this story, the French Resistance is comprised of a blind girl, older ladies in the community, an old WWI soldier with shell shock, and other unseen members who get messages out on radio waves giving away coded messages about German positions and plans. Their actions constitute a life and death danger that these common people/heroes risk because they want to be alive before they die.



What I liked about this book:

“Your problem, Werner,” says Frederick, “is that you still believe you own your life.” 

I liked getting a look at Hitler’s school for boys from Werner’s point of view. The school tries to strip the humanity and empathy from Werner and the other boys. Frederick, Werner’s best friend, refuses to buckle under the pressure and suffers the consequences.  This brief look at Werner’s life in Hitler’s academy demonstrates how Hitler invaded the hearts and minds of Germany before he invaded other countries.



What I hated to love about this book:

“A real diamond is never perfect.” 

This book makes me think about so many hidden messages and metaphors within that keeps me thinking even though I have finished the book and started others. For example, I keep thinking about the gem that came from the museum. It has legends describing its power. It has a long and rich history. It might save lives or it might destroy them. It might represent the Earth, the war, the past, the future, hope, or the people who persevere. It is pursued and protected all throughout the story. Is it worthless or is it precious? ….Or, is it just a rock… The author makes my brain strain itself just thinking about its purpose in the story. 

I am glad I read this book, and I think you will like it too.

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