All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr is an unique World War II novel that most seem to either rave or rage over. It's won multiple awards, including the Pulitzer Prize and the Carnegie Medal of Excellence in 2015, an ALA Alex Award, is a National Book Award finalist and a #1 New York Times Bestseller, and the basis of a TV series. Today I'll give my own review and summary of this controversial book.

The plot primarily centers around three people: Marie-Laure LeBlanc, the blind daughter of the locksmith for the National Museum of Natural History in Paris; Werner Pfennig, a young orphan boy in a German mining town who's an engineering genius; and Sergeant Major von Rumpel, a German officer bent on finding an unusual diamond.

Marie-Laure LeBlanc and her father are forced to flee Paris after the Germans take over and move to Saint-Malo in north-western France. They may also be in possession of a rare diamond called the Sea of Flames, which is wrapped in legend and, potentially, a curse. Soon Marie-Laure becomes a part of the French Resistance and must decide what to do when the diamond falls into her hands.

Werner Pfennig is terrified of going into the mines. So when the chance comes to leave the orphanage and pursue his engineering dreams as a German soldier, he jumps at it. After he undergoes Nazi training, he's sent on a mission that takes him all over Europe and eventually to Saint-Malo.

Sergeant Major von Rumpel doesn't have much time left before he dies but he's determined to find the Sea of Flames before his death. He goes all over Europe, systematically searching out those who could've taken it and never giving up, even though his clock is ticking and all he's come upon are forgeries.

Eventually these characters are driven together because of the war and a legendary diamond.

The author shows what people on both sides of the war thought. He gives a rare view of life in Germany in the time and the type of training the soldiers went through. Life for the French is also portrayed, though not in a graphic way. There's no stereotypical characters and the writing is descriptive.

The story covers the time between when the war started and after it ended. All loose ends are tied up and we get to find out what the characters did after the war.

At times the story was slow and a little repetitive. It also goes back and forth between 1945 and the years leading up to it, which I personally found distracting. There are a few crude sexual references and in one scene soldiers rape a group of women.

While this is not a happy book, it gives a realistic, no-nonsense look at WWII. 

This book is best read by older teens and adults, though some parents may like to skip around and use it to give younger children a glimpse of the hardships of WWII.