29.6k reviews for:

All the Light We Cannot See

Anthony Doerr

4.26 AVERAGE

milou_vholland's review against another edition

3.0

slow-paced

jennifer_fatula's review against another edition

DID NOT FINISH: 7%

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I didn't care for the narrator. I will try again with the physical book.

mairi_arty's review against another edition

3.5

adventurous dark informative mysterious reflective sad 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: Complicated

bergun's review against another edition

4.5

challenging emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

v_hankins's review against another edition

3.75

reflective sad slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

xjamilton's review against another edition

3.0

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This book is very tricky to review because I both loved and didn't like this book. The writing was exceptional and I found myself having to put the book down multiple times because of powerful lines that really resonated with you. I also found myself trying to persuade my feelings on the book to be more favourable after looking into the themes and motifs.
My biggest problem with the book is that I went into the book expecting it to be one way based on the synopsis but really didn't get that while reading. It felt like a lot of buildup and anticipation for what you expect to happen for it to then let you down and really barely be a part of the book. There's also a part of the book that the writer makes many connections to but I find there was an overlooked hole in the connection.
I think if you go into the book not expecting anything from it you'll enjoy it more.

hayleycurtis's review against another edition

4.75

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

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

misslghog's review against another edition

3.75

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

soulkissed2003's review against another edition

5.0

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

goodoldneon's review against another edition

4.0

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This book has been on my radar for awhile with all the praise it garnered and then the eventual pulitzer that it won. I'm not a huge fan of war fiction so I think that was my main reluctance but so many people have raved about this one that I finally doubled down and read it. It really is a fantastic read. Doerr has clearly done his research; the settings he writes are so established and real.

The beginning and end of this novel were my favorite parts. I thought that some parts of the middle were paced oddly with flashbacks, but it's a minor complaint. Overall, I thought this was a heartbreaking and beautiful novel.