This Memorial Day if you are looking for a book to read- I can wholeheartedly recommend Pulitzer Prize Winning novel- ‘All the Light We Cannot See’ by Anthony Doerr. If you are a history buff and are looking for a way to honor the servicemen in your life; or those you have loved and lost; even folks whose lives are impacted by circumstances beyond their control- who soldier on despite limitations and live inquisitive lives in dire situations- this book is for you.

The way an author strings together words into images fascinates me as a reader. ‘All the Light We Cannot See’ – is masterful! The author spent 10 years writing it; and what the readers receive from Doerr’s masterful art- is amazing. The sentences are like photographs. They are formed using just the words needed to convey one of the most beautiful, heart rending, historically valuable books I have ever read. That is saying a lot since I have read dozens of books just this year. If you are looking for a book that will forever remain in your Top 10, this is it. It is not a light beach read- yet would be perfect at the beach since the chapters are spare, short and concise. The writing is so beautifully rendered- savor it, be absorbed in the content. The New York Times 10 Best Books in 2014, puts me behind a few years in reading it, however- I will be forever grateful that it has passed through my heart, mind and hands.

Abraham Verghese, author of Cutting For Stone reviews All the Light We Cannot See in this way- “This jewel of a story is put together like a vintage timepiece, its many threads coming together so perfectly. Doerr’s writing and imagery are stunning. It’s been a while since a novel had me under its spell in this fashion.”

I share his sentiment- and would add that even though the book deals with harsh realities of war and life- Anthony Doerr’s book does not rely on coarse and common language to convey hard times. I believe the author could take a common fork or spoon and elevate it to an object of great importance. It is not a romance novel- yet you, the reader will be romanced by it. Let me share a few sentences with you-

Imagine being a blind girl, you are alone in a house, in a city which is being bombed-

•  ‘A stone drops into her palm. It’s cold. The size of a pigeon’s egg. The shape of a teardrop.’

A young orphaned boy listening to a ragtag radio finding a broadcast far away, which will forever change his prospective:

• The brain is locked in total darkness…It floats in clear liquid inside the skull, never in the light. And yet the world it constructs in the mind is full of light. It brims with color and movement. So how, children, does the brain, which lives without a spark of light, build for us a world full of light?’….

And this line – in the same broadcast the child is listening to- becomes a question he returns to often as the novel progresses-

• Open your eyes, concludes the man, and see what you can with them before they close forever.’

Doerr uses phrases like ‘the sleet fell like silver strings’- ‘Doubts: slipping like eels.’ ‘Everywhere mussels click and sigh…Galaxies of snails. A story of life immanent in each.’ ‘Statues smile down from ledges like kindly godparents.’

I hope I have whetted your appetite to read this book, ‘All the Light We Cannot See’.  It is unforgettable. I hope you will agree, let me know! For those of you who are wondering if my ‘war’ with mosquitos has been won? It appears, at least for now, that they’ve waved the white flag of surrender in this month’s battle! Have a wonderful weekend!

Love y’all, Camellia

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr- http://amzn.to/1ORJIR0