A review by sammiseah
Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr

emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.25

I bought this book a year back but I didn’t get to read it until Jo-Ann recommended it this year - thanks for the rec! Consumed this over the past two days amidst the new year chaos and festivities.

Anthony Doerr is famous for All The Light We Cannot See, which was a brilliant read. Cloud Cuckoo Land is less tragic but equally delightful. A love letter to librarians, books and the art of storytelling - of course I loved it.

I loved the five interwoven stories, interspersed with the folio pages of a fictional Greek work that ties the entire book together. I loved how the stories all come together at the end. And I loved the descriptions of lands and places across the different centuries (expected no less from Anthony Doerr!!). I also appreciated the references to the climate crisis, but I believe this was written/released before COVID? It’s always a bit weird with books released ~2021/2022 but set in modern day - like… one expects references to the pandemic but sometimes the authors choose not to include them?

I spent a lot of time contemplating if this book was better than All The Light We Cannot See and I do feel that All The Light left a bigger impression (just a more novel concept, especially for that time?). Nonetheless, this was a delightful tribute to books and stories and I breezed through it-  it didn’t feel like 600+ pages at all.