All the Light We Cannot See cover art

All the Light We Cannot See

A Novel

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About this listen

 Winner of the Audie Award for Fiction

*NOW A NETFLIX LIMITED SERIES—from producer and director Shawn Levy (Stranger Things) starring Mark Ruffalo, Hugh Laurie, and newcomer Aria Mia Loberti*

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award finalist, the beloved instant New York Times bestseller and New York Times Book Review Top 10 Book about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II.

Marie-Laure lives with her father in Paris near the Museum of Natural History where he works as the master of its thousands of locks. When she is six, Marie-Laure goes blind and her father builds a perfect miniature of their neighborhood so she can memorize it by touch and navigate her way home. When she is twelve, the Nazis occupy Paris, and father and daughter flee to the walled citadel of Saint-Malo, where Marie-Laure’s reclusive great uncle lives in a tall house by the sea. With them they carry what might be the museum’s most valuable and dangerous jewel.

In a mining town in Germany, the orphan Werner grows up with his younger sister, enchanted by a crude radio they find. Werner becomes an expert at building and fixing these crucial new instruments, a talent that wins him a place at a brutal academy for Hitler Youth, then a special assignment to track the Resistance. More and more aware of the human cost of his intelligence, Werner travels through the heart of the war and, finally, into Saint-Malo, where his story and Marie-Laure’s converge.

Doerr’s “stunning sense of physical detail and gorgeous metaphors” (San Francisco Chronicle) are dazzling. Deftly interweaving the lives of Marie-Laure and Werner, he illuminates the ways, against all odds, people try to be good to one another. Ten years in the writing, All the Light We Cannot See is a magnificent, deeply moving novel from a writer “whose sentences never fail to thrill” (Los Angeles Times). 20th Century Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction War Heartfelt Military

Publisher's Summary


All the Light We Cannot See traces the stories of three main characters whose lives intersect during the WWII bombing of the German-occupied French town of Saint-Malo in August 1944.

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr is an intimate and personal story of a French girl and a German boy who are drawn together while trying to keep out of the reach of Nazis during the devastation of World War II and French Resistance.

Marie-Laure Leblanc lives in Paris, France, where her father, Daniel Leblanc, works as a locksmith at the Museum of Natural History. As a young girl, Marie-Laure loses her eyesight but not her independence. Her father builds a miniature model of her neighbourhood so she can learn by touch and navigate her way home. In June 1940, when she was 12 years old, the threat of German occupation grew too great to ignore. Marie-Laure and Daniel flee from Paris to Saint-Malo, where they move in with her great-uncle, Etienne, and his housekeeper, Madame Manec. It is there that their paths cross with Werner Pfennig.

An orphan, Werner lives in Germany with his younger sister, Jutta. After becoming enchanted by a crude radio they find, Werner develops a knack for building and fixing these vital new communication instruments. His skill wins him a place at the academy for Hitler Youth–but his heart rebels at the brutality. He winds up in Saint-Malo, where he meets a blind girl and her father, who carry the museum’s most valuable and dangerous jewel - the Sea of Flames.

All the Light We Cannot See is a New York Times Best Seller, which also won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and was a National Book Award Finalist. The Netflix limited series will be released sometime in 2023, starring Mark Ruffalo, Hugh Laurie, and Aria Mia Loberti.
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A great tale, fantastic research, a wonderful backdrop to the lives of everyone who lived through the 40’s. Everyone lived such a story, very few could tell it that well. Thank you Anthony.

Mesmerizing!

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I really enjoyed this tale with WWII in the background. The narrator was excellent however I have one small quibble. As a French speaker I found the words said in French were awkward as the narrator clearly does not speak the language. The author presents a dramatic tale which is sometimes hard to listen too.

Gripping tale

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I loved this narrative with its descriptions and setting. The characters were lovely and I wish it could have gone differently, lol. Prepare to get ruined with this book :)

An Amazing Book

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Beautifully written descriptions of the characters, the locations and conversations between characters.

Overall plot, very good and enjoyed every minute.

Wonderful Story

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I really enjoy a story that is told by going back and forth in time and unraveling as it goes. I think this book would of been more enjoyable had I read it, rather than audible. I found the quick jumps from person to person sometimes hard to follow, a lot of going back and listening to the previous chapter to catch the jump. But the last 1/3 of the book it all came together!

I enjoyed the story

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