All The Light We Cannot See - #Discussion

[butlerfan]

I have the book but haven't had a chance to read it. Good luck with moving wanderingheart.

[notagoddess]

I'm jumping in. I read this book last spring, and I loved it. 

4. One of the things I liked most about the book was the perspective it gave on blindness. The descriptions of colors floating everywhere were beautiful. I think the blindness served to protect Marie-Laure in several ways. It enabled her to pick up the notes for her uncle without suspicion. She was also not exposed to the most immediate horrors of war in the same way some of the other characters were.

5. I think the powers of the Sea of Flames were inconclusive. I'm leaning towards thinking it was a gemstone at the center of coincidence because of the ending, where it is implied Jutta's son finds it in the model house. I think the author was painting a picture of that scene as exciting and hopeful, not terrifying, as would be the case if the gemstone truly brought bad luck to Jutta and her family.

6. For me, there are less unanswered questions than questions of "what if"? The biggest one is, what if Werner had stayed in the mining town?

7. Jutta's guilt over her identity as a German and the crimes of others makes sense given of how deeply moral she is. German identity was central to the Nazis, and thus was tainted in the wake of war. The "others" that committed crimes were her sibling, her neighbors, her friends, not anonymous strangers. Jutta saw these seemingly normal people around her commit atrocious acts of war. She feels shame not only because of her German identity, but because she is disillusioned with the moral compass of humanity in general. 

8. I think the author's decision to flash forward at the end of the book serves to make it less sad. Marie-Laure has done great for herself and is living a long and fulfilling life. Jutta is scarred by the war, but she has a happy home life with a kind husband and much-wanted son. Meanwhile, Volkheimer is a troubled mess, which is "fair" given that he participated directly in the atrocities of war.

[Deleted]

I thought strongly about reading the book, but it's been a hectic couple weeks.

[ellabee]

Will be back to comment tomorrow when I'm not mobile!

[ellabee]

1. The book opens with two epigraphs. How do these quotes set the scene for the rest of the book? Discuss how the radio plays a major part in the story and the time period. How do you think the impact of the radio back then compares with the impact of the Internet on today’s society?
I like that the radio was so central in the story. It was almost like anther character. It was a thread that tied Marie-Laure and Werner together through Etienne, years before they would even meet. I imagine the radio back then was pretty similar to how the internet is now. It gave people a way to communicate long distances, allowed people to spread news (and propaganda) and also was something that governments/countries try to censor and limit access to to control the spread of information. I guess you could liken Werner's efforts with triangulation to modern day hacking or codebreaking.

2. The narration moves back and forth both in time and between different characters. How did this affect your reading experience? How do you think the experience would have been different if the story had been told entirely in chronological order?
I kinda liked that it switched back and forth between different time periods. It immediately drew you into the story when you knew somewhere near the end you'd find Marie-Laure alone in the house clutching the Sea of Flames while the city was shelled around her. In the beginning of the story there is a long time gap between the different time periods. I like that as the story progressed, the time gap shortened and you could tell that when they converged, the story would get really interesting, or there'd be some kind of climax in the plot. It was so satisfying when Werner and Marie-Laure finally met.

3. Whose story did you enjoy the most? Was there any character you wanted more insight into? I liked Marie-Laure's story. You can't help but feel the story from her perspective. Maybe it's because you spend so much time trying to imagine and "feel" everything around her due to her blindness.


Gonna post this now and follow-up later. Jeez, this day got away from me. I'll be back.