Welcome to our virtual book club for May! Our book for this month is All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. It’s easy to participate: just write a comment in the comment section in response to one of these questions or about anything else you’d like to discuss.
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Truth be told, I wasn’t sure I was in the mood to read a war book this month. And truth #2 be told, I wasn’t sure I wanted to read a World War II book. I just may have binged on them as a teenager, and I thought I’d exceeded my quota. But enough people recommended the book to me that I finally caved. And I’m glad I did—this is unlike any other war book you’ve ever read.
All the Light We Cannot See is about a French girl named Marie Laure, who is blind, and a German soldier, Werner, both of whom are caught in the crossfires of World War II. The chapters alternately tell their stories as their paths come closer together and eventually collide.
I heard it took Anthony Doerr ten years to write this book, and I’m not surprised. His details are luscious—I felt like I was able to see, smell, hear, and feel every scene.
Discussion #1: Can you remain human in war?
One of the things I appreciated most about this book was the way it put a human face on both sides of the war. I’d never given in-depth thought to what might lead a person to become a Nazi, and seeing Werner’s story gave me more sympathy for him while still feeling the pain Marie Laure and her family went through. I also appreciated the reminder that in the darkest times, against all odds, there were people who showed courage and generosity and kindness to one another—even their enemies.
Do you tend to like books about war? Why or why not? Which character(s) do you think showed great courage?
Discussion #2: What would it be like to be blind?
Marie-Laure says, “To shut your eyes is to guess nothing of blindness.” I was taken by the author’s ability to describe sensory details so vividly. As my aunt told me after she read the book, Doerr “painted sound.” This palpability made the lovely scenes even more beautiful and the terrifying scenes even more tense (like when Marie-Laure was opening the can when a soldier lurked downstairs!). And while this book gives only a window into what it might be like to be blind, it was fascinating to read how sharp the other senses become when one of them is missing.
What do you think would be the most challenging part of not having sight? What did you think of Marie-Laure’s father’s patience as he taught her to memorize her city?
Discussion #3: What do you think the title means?
The title has so many layers—more with each chapter I read. When Werner and his sister, Jutta, hear the French broadcast on the radio, it concludes with these words: “Open your eyes and see what you can with them before they close forever.” Beyond the obvious connection to Marie-Laure’s blindness, this title seems to hint that there’s goodness in people you wouldn’t expect (case in point: Werner). There are some people who are physically blind but can see truth, and there are people with vision who miss the goodness and beauty around them.
Did you like the title? What prompted you to pick up the book?
Discussion #4: What did you think of the book’s structure?
The chapters are very short, and told from shifting perspectives. On top of that, the story jumps in time, unfolding outside of chronological order. The alternating points of view work well to give us empathy for both stories, but the rapid switching felt jarring to me at first. And I often found myself disoriented about the timing and flipping back through pages to check the date. I give credit to the author for his creative approach, and while this definitely serves to build the suspense, it took me out of the story at times.
What did you think of the way the author told the story?
Rating
How many stars would you give this book?
I liked that this book was a fresh take on World War II, and I appreciated the sensory details and nuanced characters. I also appreciated the underlying theme of thriving in adversity, as captured by Madame Manec’s question: “Don’t you want to be alive before you die?”
I would give it 4 out of 5 stars.
{Remember: I’ll give away a free book to one lucky commenter!}
Ive seen this book everywhere and simple love the title. Reading your post here has convinced me that I need to read it! I’ve put it on my “next up” list! Thank you for the recommendation.
I hope you love it, Rachel! I agree–it’s a great title, and great cover.
This was one of the best-written books I have read in a long time. In most cases, I skim right over details and long descriptions, but Doerr drew me in when he described Werner as a little boy “interrogating the world.” Mid-way through the book, I’ll admit some of the detailing bogged me down, but then I began enjoying the descriptiveness again. I’ve never been one to dig for symbolism or look for deeper meaning in fiction, but Doerr had me peeling back layer after layer, considering the book’s content and messaging even when it wasn’t in my hands.
I love your description of him “peeling back layer after layer.” So true!
I really enjoyed this book. The characters were so human to me, but from our 2015 point of view, knowing the events of WWII, I had a pit in my stomach for them through much of the book (especially once Marie-Laure had traveled to her Uncles town and Werner had left for the boys school). I just didn’t want Werner, Jutta, Marie-Laure to have to endure the suffering that was foreshadowed.
Marie-Laure’s blindness initially limited her world and her father’s action to help her her struggle opened her up to experience so much more and become so valuable in the war effort. I continually thought about the analogy of the Christian walk to ML’s journey She was very inspiring to me.
All I can say about the title is that it has made me think about looking for the light in everything, because I know I don’t see it a lot of the time. There are so many levels of the light and so many situations in daily life that are not war that prevent us from seeing the LIGHT.
I’m not sure why but I had put this book on my wish list at Christmas time. I most likely heard a interview of the author or read a review. Or it may have come up on my suggestion list from Amazon. In any cast I would give it 4 out of 5 stars.
Diane, I love your thoughts about how the title has prompted you to look for light in everything! Beautiful.
I listened to the book because I could get it from the library. It was beautiful to listen to. I loved the book. I really liked the way that it switched from story to story and gave you hints of future events without giving anything away. The gemstone (I think it was a diamond) was so central to the story but so unimportant. I want to know what people think happened to it. I kept thinking it would show up at the end.
The relationships were the best part of the story. So intertwined and so unique. I agree that the “humanity” of war is hard to capture but this book did it well. The way Marie-Laure used her hands and feet to make up for her blindness was so vividly explained. I could almost feel her blindness. I too think the title has a lot of meaning especially related to her blindness. I would give this book five out of five stars. It was beautifully written.
I enjoyed this book very much. I gravitate to human transformation stories, so this one, set in war is less about war and more about how we are shaped and molded by our circumstances. I liked the parallel stories of two young people, I liked the switching P.O.Vs, but like you, Stephanie, I was often disoriented in time. But that wasn’t a deal breaker, it made reading a study, a search. Seeing the war from the opposing point of view, especially as it gave structure and identity for a young man on the fringe, was thought provoking, and timely. We are all looking for ways to be significant, known, part of a larger story…even if it’s the wrong story in the end. I found it alive in imagery, sensing the smooth surfaces of the carved puzzles, wondering at refracted light from the gemstone, smelling the trees. My only critique is that the ending seemed rushed. I wanted to be inside the characters’ heads, not watching them from the outside when they made their critical final moves. I’ve recommended this book many times. So 5 stars.
Cheryl, I love what you said about how we all want to be part of a larger story. So true! Thanks for reading & participating!
Nancy, I bet this would have been a great one to listen to! Did they have different narrators to read from both points of view? Thanks for participating!
I was drawn to this book for its intriguing title before knowing anything about it. And I’m a WWII-fiction junkie, so that part was no problem. 🙂 I did feel leery going into this story once I knew one of the main characters is blind, though—given how bad my own eyesight is, that seemed really stressful and, at first, like something I’d rather avoid. But I was quickly and thoroughly drawn in by these characters. It’s clear that the author was interested in so many different threads and details (possibly a few too many, although they all come together very well), but he didn’t lose sight of or sacrifice his characters to his research, which I was really impressed by. I loved both Marie Laure and Werner.
I was also amazed by the sensory details in Marie Laure’s scenes, and I found it incredible the way she was able to learn and navigate her world. Part of me wondered if this was at all exaggerated, but I’m guessing not, and would like to believe it’s not.
I actually liked the structure right away, even though I agree that it took some settling into. It made me wonder if the author wrote this way from the start or rearranged things at a later stage. But I think the time jumps worked well to give the story momentum and tension; because we start so far back and the story takes so many different directions, it could have felt meandering, but jumping to the one pivotal day in the future kept pulling me forward.
However, while I think the author had a good grasp on his structure, maybe my one major criticism of this book would be that it didn’t quite feel like he knew where to end the story. Because I liked the characters so much, I was happy to go as far into the future with them as the author wanted to go, but I think he could’ve ended sooner and had less of a dragged-out feel.
That’s a picky point in a book that I loved overall. It reminded me in some ways of The Book Thief—obviously in the time period, but also because the author played with structure and loaded in details in a way that could’ve felt gimmicky, but was done skillfully enough that I was just impressed by how well he crafted his story. And this especially worked for me because he also gave me real-seeming characters to care about. Thanks for picking this one, Stephanie! I’d had it on my list for a while but am glad I had a reason to get to it sooner than I would’ve otherwise.
Ooh, great thoughts, Sarah! I agree with you about the ending–it seemed a little abrupt after so much build-up. Thanks for your insights!
I love that I just ended up on your blog after searching for cheat summaries for this book! I’ve only gotten through half of it for a book club tomorrow morning, and I desperately wish I’d had time to finish! I loved the line you mention, “Open your eyes and see what you can with them before they close forever.” I hadn’t thought of that way of seeing the title!
Thanks for some talking points in case I decide NOT to admit to not finishing tomorrow!
I read All the Light You Can Not See, because it is our One book, One Community, book. And because it won the Pulitzer for fiction. But also because the author was raised in Cleveland Ohio as I was. The ending bothered me. I wanted reassurance that the diamond was returned to it’s rightful owner, the Museum. I also felt there was something very wrong, a flaw, selfishness?, in Marie Laure’s not giving Jutta more info about Werner. She knew how far Jutta traveled, tell her more! Werner was a hero! Jutta suffered more than Marie. She was raped, she was an ophan. Marie felt deeply loved by family and others. Jutta didn’t have that.
So glad you joined the discussion, Eve! I agree about the ending…I would have liked more resolution! Happy day to you in Ohio. 🙂
I will be leading a book discussion tomorrow. I found your questions very helpful but the comments from others were even more pertinent and led to additional questions. I finished the book, understand why it is considered to be a great book….but, I can’t say I enjoyed the book. The characters were very well-developed but I just felt unsettled during the entire read, like there was something I was missing.
Thanks for stopping by, Nancy! Hope the discussion goes well.
I loved All the Light we Cannot See so much! There are many points where I think it highlights the destruction-creation paradox through the continuous losses they go through but end up shining brighter in the end. I think Marie-Laure’s blindness really induces a sense of reality and human nature in the reader. It encourages us to engage in the way in which human nature itself is quite selfish and we shouldn’t take what we have for granted.
It also got me thinking about a saying: “the eyes are the window to the soul”. Considering Marie’s characterisation I do not think this is necessarily true. Although Marie is blind, she sees more truth than those who have vision. It also got me thinking that those of us who have perfect sight often miss the beauties and wonders of the world and we don’t appreciate it as much as someone of the likes of Marie who engages in everything she interacts with through other modes of experience.
Thanks for this great book club Stephanie!
Thanks for your great insights, Nuria! I love what you said: “Although Marie is blind, she sees more truth than those who have vision.” So true!