A good novel is supposed to immerse the reader in the world of the story and have rich characters and plot. In this blog post, I will be sharing my experience reading one of my favourite novels, All the Light We Cannot See, by Anthony Doerr. It is a historical fiction novel set predominantly during the time period of World War II in Europe, and revolves around rich characters and an interesting plot. I will also explain why I really enjoyed this book and why I recommend that you read this amazing piece of writing.
Basic Summary
The story revolves around the two main characters: Marie-Laure LeBlanc and Werner Pfennig. Marie-Laure is a French girl living in Paris, whose father works as a locksmith at the Museum of Natural History. When she becomes blind, her father builds her a model of their neighbourhood, and she learns to navigate by touch. When German forces occupy Paris, Marie-Laure and her father flee to Saint-Malo.
Werner, roughly in the same age group as Marie-Laure, is an orphan who grows up in a German mining town with a passion for radios and problem-solving. Werner’s intelligence earns him a spot at the National Political Institute of Education, a prestigious military academy where he confronts brutality. In 1944, Werner’s mission brought him to Saint-Malo during its intense bombardment from both sides. Werner encounters Marie-Laure by tracking her radio broadcasts and chooses to protect her from dangerous threats.
Why I Liked It
I loved this novel as it was a wonderful experience to read and has an amazing plot and well-developed characters. Anthony Doerr did an excellent job of immersing the reader into the world of the story and keeping the novel engaging throughout. By portraying the story from different perspectives of Marie-Laure and Werner, Doerr vividly presents the various aspects of a complex war and how it impacts people from unique backgrounds and experiences. The alternating nature of the points of view of characters in this novel adds a layer of suspense to the plot and shows the unifying message of the shared humanity of both sides of a war, and builds empathy.
Another major reason I rate this novel very highly is that the plot is filled with rich and vivid imagery, making the novel a page-turner on various occasions. Doerr’s use of alternating time periods from the past and present builds suspense and sparks curiosity in the reader, until everything finally locks into place at the end. The novel, being slower paced for the majority of the story, allowed for depth in the plot and character development. The short chapters, alternating perspectives and time periods also made the overall reading experience very engaging and made me lose track of time when reading.
Themes It Explored
There were many rich and complex themes explored throughout All the Light We Cannot See. The novel explores the themes of hope and resilience by depicting its main characters finding light in dark moments through stories, radios and kindness. An example of resilience is Marie-Laure. Despite her blindness and young age, she is able to handle the trauma of war effectively, and her courage and curiosity aid her.
From this novel, I am taking away the idea of how even small acts of kindness can create large impacts on the lives of others, by providing hope in a challenging situation. I also learned that even the most disastrous situations can have a glimmer of hope and light, which was in the form of radios in the novel.
I learned how humans are capable of both extreme cruelty and kindness, and that empathy and open-mindedness is key. I also learned the moblike mentality of humans and the natural desire to blend in with the crowd, and how it is important to act with our conscience and preserve our convictions at all costs.
Overall, this book contains insightful themes, and I have taken many ideas and learned lots about the world around me. Even if most of this book takes place in the past, all of the themes present are still relevant, and everyone can learn something from it.