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WW2: 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
All the Light We Cannot See
What you need to know before your trail
Marie-Laure is a blind girl living with her father in Paris and Werner is a young boy living in a mining village in Germany. He comes to the attention of the Hitler Youth whereas she lives in a world of darkness until her father makes her a avery special gift.
As the war escalates, these two young people will cross paths – stories on the radio of the time connect them. When Marie-Laure’s father unfolds the mystery of a valuable jewel, they have to flee France and end up in St Malo.
This is the story of war, of two children trapped inside a world they cannot begin to understand – a world of darkness and despair but who manage to find humanity and salvation along the way
Travel Guide
Germany and France WW2
The story of war seen through the eyes of two young children.
Marie -Laure’s world is particularly poignant as she ‘sees’ through touch and smell. She can’t describe what she sees but she can evoke her other senses and describe her world which is dramatically recreated in the reader’s mind.
From the scenes in Germany and those of the journey into St Malo, this a vivid retelling of the conditions of war and the forced journey from the orphanage to the military school where the Hitler Youth movement have realised that this is a boy who they can shape into something they need – it’s going to be a brutal time and a regime which ensures that only the strongest survive.
Children see things with such innocence that war takes on a whole other meaning – one which shows just how futile war is and how Nazi propaganda tried to infiltrate such young minds to devastating effect.
The world of the Resistance, the bombing of St Malo, the spread of Nazi propaganda and the reality of all this, is brought to vivid life.
Booktrail Boarding Pass Information: All the Light We Cannot See
Author/Guide: Anthony Doerr Destination: St Malo, Paris, Essen, Berlin Departure Time: ww2
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