UB Libraries Book Group discussion

Hello Everyone,
Welcome back to our monthly book discussions. This month we take a look at All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. I'm anxious to see how everyone liked this book. I think this is one of my favorites. Doerr's writing style just blew me away, and the story is filled with interesting imagery.

So, what did you think? Whose story did you enjoy the most? Were there any characters you wanted more insight into?

Lori

I liked this book, which is no surprise given that it won the Pulitzer and everyone seems to be reading it and talking about it.

Due to bad timing on my part, I ended up reading it almost right after another very similar book "Winter of the World" by Ken Follett. So it was a little too much "WWII hardship told from different national perspectives." While I thought both books were engaging, both were obviously depressing too.

Yes, WWII books can be very depressing, but I like reading novels set in that era, and that war in particular. The fact that people went along with things, whether they agreed or believed in them, in order to survive, as well as the courage people found to do what they could - like many of the characters in this book - can be compelling reading.

You're right, Lori. The incredible ability of the various people affected so greatly by WWII to adapt, survive, and even rise above it all is compelling and inspirational.

In this case, the added aspects of telling the story from the perspective of such young people, the fact of Marie-Laure's blindness, and the mystery of the hidden jewel were interesting to me.

I absolutely adored this book. The writing was beautiful, and I really liked how the story was told from both points of view, and how the storylines slowly merged and then separated again. I see it as sort of an hourglass in my mind.

I didn't find it particularly depressing, though there were certainly depressing parts. Of course, I didn't read it immediately after finishing another WWII book. ;) I found it generally uplifting, especially at the end when we learned more about Marie-Laure's life. I was terribly sad when Werner was killed; I honestly thought he'd survive. It was probably more realistic that he didn't.

Ellen, you said that it's not a surprise that you liked this book because it won a Pulitzer. I wish I were as confident about the chances of me liking a book because it won a particular prize. I find that's often not the case for me. :)

Ooo, I love that hourglass image, Stacy. It fits right in with the themes of the book. It also reminds me of the tag line for that old soap opera..."Like sands through the hourglass, so are The Days of our Lives." (No, I didn't watch it, but my grandmother did!) And that makes me think of Marie-Laure living her life one day at a time. I found this quote from the book that sort of goes along with that thought: “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?”

You and I are in the same camp when it comes to Pulitzer books, Stacy.

I initially found this book a bit hard to get into -- the two page chapters seemed too fragmented and if I put the book down for a day or two I had trouble remembering the time/place and circumstances of the characters. However, once into it, I absolutely loved it.

I didn't feel depressed during most of the book but rather felt dread as I moved closer to the end, wondering how/if Werner and Marie-Laure would meet up and in what circumstances. I especially felt dread insinuating itself slowly throughout the book with anything Werner was involved in.

Unlike Stacy, though, I found the final newer chapters of their lives more depressing than uplifting. I did not expect this book to end with anyone really living happily ever after but I had hopes that the characters would end with more happiness in their lives than they seemed to. Those last chapters made me rather melancholy; the war had cast such a pall over them for the entirety of their lives that even the larger life events (marriages, children etc.) were recapped in a few sentences, making me feel like all of the most positive events were still eclipsed by the war. Likely that could be true to life for many people living through wartime. But still very sad.

Aside from Marie-Laure and Werner, I really loved Etienne throughout and found Volkheimer a very interesting character. What he said to Werner, "What you could be" could be said of them all in some ways.

I have to say that this book was not what I thought it would be. Whenever there is a lot of hype surrounding a book, I find myself disappointed because it rarely lives up to my imagination. I did however like the book, especially Marie-Laure who was an extremely resilient person in spite of her blindness. She had a true sense of what was right and humane, even convincing her uncle to transmit the nightly "news". Although she could not see people, she sensed whether they were good or bad.

I loved when the story line finally merged. Although I knew there wasn't going to be a happy ending, I think it was the right ending. Maybe it is a romantic idea but when Werner and Marie-Laure finally meet it seemed like a quiet moment in the midst of chaos. One of those moments in a movie where you would see bombs exploding all around two people but none of the noise. You always know they will never meet again. Had Werner lived, I would have guessed he would have been haunted the rest of his life by what he saw and experienced during the war. He was haunted by things he experiences even while it was living it.

Great description, Marlies, you are right about the quiet amidst the chaos. It totally did feel that way. I also agree that Werner was already haunted; I could not imagine how his character would function after the war. With his sister and his friend (Frederick?) as sort of his moral conscience it was already a struggle for him to survive in his situation.

Stupid question time: What about the jewel? Did she leave it in the alcove by the sea? Did Werner hide it there and then put the key in the little model house?

I adored this book. The resilience of the people during that period is still amazing to me. It brought back stories that my grandparents told. I too, knew the ending wasn't going to be happy but I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish.

Ellen, I guess for some reason I thought Marie-Laure put the jewel in the sea but I don't have the book with me to see why I thought that. In hindsight maybe Werner did. I also remember thinking the author intentionally left it ambiguous, much like the ending of 20,000 Leagues that Werner and M-L discussed.

I thought Marie-Laure left the jewel there for Werner. Goodreads has several reader answers to that question. Just click on the "spoiler alert" text if it shows up.
https://www.goodreads.com/questions/1...

I loved this book. I thought that the writing was clear and imaginative and that each character had a distinct personality. I am generally a fan of WWII novels, since I have trouble comprehending life for the Europeans during this time. I found myself liking nearly all the characters. I looked up the spoilers regarding the gemstone and it seems to me that M-L put the little box with the stone in the grotto and that Werner retrieved the box and left the stone. But it was good to have some ambiguity there so that the reader was left with more to think about. In any case, it was the best book I have read in quite some time and I will recommend it to anyone who will listen!

This book I did listen to and I was very happy to have such a good story to break up the monnteny of my regular habit of listening to podcasts and conference recordings to keep up with my work. I loved the characters, the true to life lessons and the love story. The book also painted many visuals as the story unfolded. It also left me with a sense that there may be parts of the story pulled from real people's lives who endured and persevered (and sometimes who did not).

I hate to say, September flew by for me. I requested the book but it has yet to come. From all the interesting comments, I will have to pick it up, once it does arrive.

Becky -- Mary Ann gave me her copy and said she doesn't want it back. Do you want it?

Sure. Appreciate it! I'll email you about arrangements on Monday.

I've been away (in Ireland) and feeling under the weather since my returne, so September is a distant memory at this point. I read this book several months ago and consider it an amazing work of fiction written by a remarkably talented author. Highly recommend; 5 stars+

Over the weekend I listened to The Slate's Audio Book Club podcast discussion of this book. It was interesting.

http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/bo...

I also read the book during the early summer. I remember finding the German story very interesting. I didn't care for the back and forth chapters but that seems to be the way many new novels are being written. I would give the story 4 stars since it did (i thought) represent a time and place I knew little about and the characters were well developed.