Anthony Doerr’s Pulitzer Prize-winning All the Light We Cannot See is a brilliant glimpse into the lives of ordinary people in the extraordinary and harrowing circumstances of war. Postmodern in its fragmented narrative style and haunting in its subject matter, this is an introspective tale that explores the coming of age on either side of the war during an uncertain era. There is little action and the pace is slow, and I did not care for the fantastical elements revolving around the diamond plot. I felt those elements lessened the impact of the tale and the history included. That said, the story is one to be mulled over as Mr. Doerr’s prose is some of the best I have read. His writing is evocative, poetic, and stunningly beautiful. For the prose alone, the book is worth reading.