All The Light We Cannot See

ALL THE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE
by Anthony Doerr

 Awards: Carnegie Winner 2015, Goodreads Winner 2014, Pulitzer Winner 2015

 Nominations: Dayton Literary Peace Finalist 2015, Dublin Longlist 2016, National Book Finalist 2014, New York Times Finalist 2014

 Date Read: February 16, 2015

 This is only the second novel I have ever picked up by my own steam that happened to receive any awards, The Goldfinch being the first. This gem of a novel occurs during WWII in occupied France. The protagonist, a blind French girl named Marie-Laure, lives with her widowed father, who dotes on her and takes every opportunity to enrich her world through Braille books, puzzle boxes and a precise miniature model of their neighborhood. 

 Parallel to this narrative is an orphaned German boy, Werner, who repairs a broken radio, creating a lifeline to the outside world, with a science program broadcast from France being his favorite. As the war progresses, Marie-Laure and her father flee to the coastal town of Saint-Malo to reside with their relative Etienne, who is revealed to be the source of the science program. With radios all but banned now, it is concealed deep in the bowels of his house. Etienne illicitly broadcasts secret messages, much to the dismay of the Nazis.

 As Werner grows older, he is conscripted to Nazi service and eventually arrives on the shores of Normandy, where he is tasked with hunting down the secret broadcast messages. He eventually finds the source, meeting Marie-Laure, finding mutual respect and understanding there, and allows the broadcasts to continue, thereby allowing Marie-Laure to live out the remainder of her life while Werner is ultimately killed.

 These characters were richly written and the way each plot detail and backstory evolved was exquisite. I love novels where two disparate plot lines eventually converge to a beautiful symphony and that is exactly what happens in All The Light We Cannot See.

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