A review by cle_hobbit
Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr

5.0

"Stranger, whoever you are, open this to learn what will amaze you."

Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr.

To begin, Marin Ireland's audio narration is some of the best I've listened to. She does just a perfect job of capturing the childlike wonder of some parts of the novel and doesn't overperform the voices to the point that they become distracting.

I read [b:All the Light We Cannot See|18143977|All the Light We Cannot See|Anthony Doerr|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1451445646l/18143977._SY75_.jpg|25491300] by Doerr a couple years ago, and it was an instant favorite of mine when I read it. So, when Cloud Cuckoo Land came out, I was hesitant at first because the title, cover, and the description seemed more YA-oriented than I usually prefer.

I was blown away. Doerr's ability to switch time periods and environments with ease while still maintaining a cohesive and interconnected overarching story impressed me greatly. I also appreciate that his novels tend to have a well-developed historical context to each of them, so I always find myself discovering new areas of the world and history that I would not have otherwise come across.

And this is essentially the message of the novel. Stories may be lost to time, decay, war, accidents, etc., but when a story is able to survive through the centuries and be discovered and rediscovered, then there is a connection and a shared experience that everyone who interacts with that story is a part of.

Without being heavy-handed, Doerr also easily folds into his stories some contemporary and some persistent struggles that humanity has with each other, with its own history, and with its environment.

The most fascinating part, for me, was the [fictional] story by [very much real] ancient Greek author Antonius Diogenes that acts both as an engine for all of the different stories in the novel, but also as a reflection of the characters' journeys in each of those stories.

Doerr really loves stories and storytelling, but this novel makes it apparent that he also is enamored with how stories are created, passed on, and set down in human history.

I implore any new readers of this novel not to be intimidated by the jumping around different storylines in the beginning, or by the first story being set in the near future. The stories are relatable, engaging, but most importantly, beautiful.