by Anthony Doerr
Blog written by Meredith
This wonderful book is the 2014 Pulitzer Prize winner for a reason.
Richly researched and beautifully constructed with well developed characters in a sobering setting, this book was a definite crowd pleaser.
Probably our highest rating book of the year with at least half our book club members giving it 9+ out of ten.
It took the author 10 years to write this book, benefiting from an enormous amount of research.
The compelling tale of young French blind girl weaves its way along the tale of her German counterpart, a young orphaned German boy who rises from the Orphanage to the specialist army radio unit, their paths converging in the bombardment of St. Malo, albeit brief but memorable.
A truly compelling journey that will delight you and sadden you at the same time. All the characters are superbly developed with both sides of the war coming to life with empathy and understanding.
Some of our club suggested that had there been a more feminine influence in the world perhaps there would have been a better outcome, or was it just a case of universal human nature?
Nobody was too sure about the subplot of the Sea of Flames. This story of the precious stone may have seemed a bit strange at first but it was generally agreed that it added to the magic of the story. The fact that Werner threw the stone into the sea, keeping Marie Laure’s model instead was heartwarming, showing what really mattered in life.
My dear friend Stacy gave me this book because she thought I would enjoy it.
I loved it so much I put it up for the bookclub who loved it too!
Our average rating for this book is 9.2/10
They described it as brilliant, moving, interesting, thought provoking, delicately written and beautifully constructed.
Personally, I think it was a standout!
Our next meeting is on Thursday Oct 15 at Robyn's and the book we will be discussing is Your Voice in My Head : A Memoir by Emma Forest
