A review by charity1313
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

At first I couldn't put my finger on why I wasn't liking this book, but then I did some searching online to find out how much was based in truth and that's when it hit me - there are so many good, fantastical, true stories from World War II that this fictional work felt too forced. The characters, the plot, the setting - all felt contrived and conveniently created for the story in order to present a particular message, which technically yes that IS almost all fiction, but if it's good fiction then it doesn't feel that way while reading it. It is touching in places, heart breaking in others, and terribly gritty in others. Maybe WWII fiction stories aren't for me, I can't recall many that I've liked. I might just stick to the nonfiction stories. There are so many to be told.  
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