This book I am sure is on many people's reading lists currently. It is such a beautiful and spell binding novel. It think what separates this book from any other current hotpicks is the way it is written. You see from two perspectives who for the most part are very similar, but also very different. Marie-Laure goes blind when she is very young and from that point on whenever you are reading from her perspective, you see from her eyes literally. The way the rooms or her travels are described are exactly how she 'sees' it from her other senses. Doerr describes what she feels in her hands and what she may already know from being at that spot before. When a noise or motion happens she will describe seeing lights flashing by or illuminating the direction it is going with all different colors. When you read form Werner's point of view you are seeing things from the eyes of a naive boy at first. As Werner learns more about radio waves and starts asking questions common people cannot answer his life starts to change. Werner is very mentally advanced for his age and he sees how things are connected even if its not visible to the human eye. That is the beauty of Marie-Laure's and Werner's relationship. They do not have to see each other to know and sense one another. From the moment they meet there is trust and understanding far beyond their years. Certain people are just old souls and understand what they do not know for certain.
I think the reason this book is so captivating is because from the start you see chapters about Marie-Laure and chapters about Werner. You know they will meet. However, you have no clue when or how. Finally at the very end of the book, it is Werner who finds Marie-Laure and saves her from a Nazi trying to get a precious gem from her. They only interact for two to three chapters and then must separate again, which as a reader is as hard to read as I'm sure it would have been for them (had this not been fiction). From then on you are still dreaming about the day the find each other after the war is over. I kept telling myself that Werner could not have died, he can't have died, he didn't die. It wasn't until I finished the book the I finally believed Werner died right after saving Marie-Laure's life. It is a bittersweet ending, but a poetic one at that.
There are so many amazing characters in this novel, but they are not as amazing as the two constructed lovers that Doerr leads with. The one last thing I have to talk about is yet again based on Doerr's amazing writing. When Werner starts his training at a Nazi camp, Doerr does an amazing job at describing the overall feel of the Nazi group. They had a sense of unity that exceeds any other country, school, team, etc. To quote from the book: "...You will strip away your weakness, your cowardice, your hesitation. You will become like a waterfall, a volley of bullets-you will all surge in the same direction at the same pace toward the same cause. You will forgo comforts; you will live by duty alone. You will eat country and breathe nation" (pg. 137). To have been there would have been terrifying, but the unity they create is astonishing.
Please leave any positive thoughts or questions :)
No comments:
Post a Comment