Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

38 reviews

johannafrth's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5

the story is tragic and heavy and that's exactly the way it felt reading the book. uneasy, oppressing, frightening. the atmosphere of the plot and the situation during WWII were well matched and projected onto the reader which made the story feel extremely real. i really appreciated the style of writing. highly poetical and tragical and so beautiful. apart from that i was a little underwhelmed. the different storylines and time jumps were confusing from time to time and it took some time to get used to it. also, at some points the story felt very repetitive and dragged and i think it could have been done with at least 100 pages less. what i really liked however were the extremely well researched background and historical information which added to the feeling and realness of the plot i mentioned at the beginning.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Death, Death of parent, Gun violence, and Violence

Moderate: Abandonment, Murder, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Minor: Vomit, Antisemitism, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

helliepad's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This books made my brain feel like somebody dipped their hands in menthol and camphor and deep massaged every gelatinous nook and cranny of it. I don't normally like war stories written by guys because 9/10 they all are about glorification of history and intellectual masturbatory fantasies but this book is very human. Very touching. I did not feel like I would be led astray by this book.

The characters were compelling and wholly fleshed out. The reader cannot help but feel for them- this is a story written in the middle of a war, and I am someone who clearly hasn't grown up in it, but I can relate to how these young characters felt to always be at the mercy and capricious whims of powerful external forces that were unexplainable, and very large and powerful that it can affect their life despite not being that involved in it.

This is a story not about the war, but about the kindness that can still pop up despite destruction. The little everyday, human, thoughtless things that can help and heal, and ultimately what happens during it.

At the end of the book, the story will have leapt through the next century. I cannot help but feel the weight of the years alongside the characters. Truly  what else can we do but help each other? What else can we do after a storm, a war, a plague that ruins countless lives and generations- but to get up and live the next day?

It is a beautiful story and I'm glad I read it, and I will read it again.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and War

Moderate: Abandonment and Death

Minor: Genocide and Rape

alittlelifer's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Violence, War, Blood, Colonisation, and Death

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, and Physical abuse

Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, Vomit, Abandonment, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Animal death, and Death of parent

letsreaddrew's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

A magical story set in WWII France about a blind French girl navigating her way through life in war torn France, and a German boy navigating his way through being a child soldier in the Wehrmacht with a gift for understanding radios and the dangers they face that lead them to crossing paths.... It's one is them great WWII hf books out there.... Very easy to read told in small chapters.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: War, Racism, Murder, Death, and Abandonment

treegirl22's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

For the most part beautiful description and really hooked you in.

the last 15% seems a bit redundant lots of flash forwards and revisiting characters which makes everything seem a bit anticlimactic. Also overfocuses on the stone plot which is not the most interesting part

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Child abuse, War, Rape, Pedophilia, and Death

Moderate: Abandonment, Mental illness, Grief, and Death of parent

Minor: Antisemitism

sjanke2's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abandonment, Antisemitism, Blood, Bullying, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Grief, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Racial slurs, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, War, and Xenophobia

lettersinthemargins's review against another edition

The bleakness of the text is obvious considering it is a WW2 novel. However, the characters did not stick as much as other works I've read in this genre. Even a book as popular as The Book Theif. The women characters serve to further the male character's story. And Marie Laurie's disability narrative felt over the top. A few of the Nazi narrative details felt a little sensationalised and devoid of empathetic condemnation. Ultimately, couldn't get beyond the second half because it felt like too much effort for nothing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Violence, Xenophobia, War, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, and Hate crime

Moderate: Abandonment, Death of parent, Genocide, Misogyny, and Sexism

aeriecircus's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying and Child abuse

Moderate: Abandonment, Child death, Confinement, and Death

Minor: Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Infertility, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Terminal illness, Violence, and Xenophobia