All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

"Open your eyes and see what you can with them before they are closed forever." That's a line from Anthony Doerr's All the Light We Cannot See. The protagonists in this novel are a blind French girl and a German boy who is an engineering prodigy. But both of them, in their youth, will be challenged to see, to face, the moral dilemmas of their time. The novel is set in the period leading to World War Two, the war years, and many years later.

The novel opens in August 1944, but the story shifts back and forth in time, preparing us for the moment when these two young lives converge, when two people, on opposite sides of the war, find goodness in one another.  I should add that the book doesn't end with that encounter and the shifting time narrative only adds to the suspense.

Anthony Doerr's novel had become a publishing sensation, striking a chord with a wide readership.  It is, after all, emotionally involving with an engrossing story, memorable characters and situations, and, at over 500 pages, a quick and satisfying read.  It is also told without sentiment and a wonderful sense for detail. There is a locksmith who builds intricate boxes, a search for a rare jewel, an indoctrination at a Hitler Youth camp, and a vividly described tall house located by the sea at Saint-Malo - a house with a special history of its own. When it didn't receive the National Book Award, All the Light We Cannot See became even more topical. It was part of the news. Then, it went on to win the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.

Virgin River by Robyn Carr

The main character, Mel, has gone through a very difficult period in her life. Since the tragic death of her husband, she has struggled to return to her “normal” life in LA. She feels that her only solution is to get away from the big city and move to small town life. Thus, nearly on a whim, she moves to Virgin River where she can continue her midwifery, assist the elderly doctor, and try to work through her personal pain with anonymity.

When Mel first arrives in town, she is shocked to see that the promised accommodations are not at all habitable. Faced with this, she decides that she cannot stay and will be leaving the next morning. However, as she is about to drive out of town, a newborn baby is found abandoned on the doctor’s doorstep. With this shocking turn of events, she makes the decision to stay until the mother can be found. Through the course of events to follow, Mel not only works through her pain but also allows love to enter back into her life. 

Romance fans will find a winner with this read.

Deep Down Dark by Hector Tobar

In 2010, in a northern desert area of Chile, the San Jose mine collapsed. There were 33 miners trapped deep underground and the massive explosion blocked their escape. For a long time no one knew if there were survivors. Then a drill bore a narrow hole into a chamber and when the bit was hoisted back a note was attached. It read "We are well" and signed "The 33." There was a global audience as attempts were made to rescue the men over a 69 day period.

While there is no secret to the story's conclusion, Hector Tobar's account is suspenseful and riveting.  He weaves together a tale of endurance, family anguish, massive publicity, and self-serving politics.  Novelist Ann Patchett described this true story as "a masterpiece of compassion." Tobar puts the reader in the mine - deep down dark - to share the experience of entrapment with the miners. We share their danger, their fears, their hunger, and their disagreements. The cavern where they gathered was both their coffin and their church. This experience and its telling rates with the best of adventure tales, one with many moral lessons.

The Lady in Gold by Anne-Marie O'Connor

The movie is titled Woman in Gold.  But first came the book, The Lady in Gold, by journalist Anne-Marie O'Connor. Both titles refer to Gustav Klimt's iconic 1907 portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer.  This work was the first of two paintings of the artist's lady friend and patron. Some Austrians consider it the equivalent of their Mona Lisa. When Austria was annexed by Germany in 1938 the Bloch-Bauer properties - including five Klimt paintings - were confiscated by the Nazi state. Family members were sent to concentration camps. It was not until six decades later that surviving relatives were able to seek restitution. After years of legal wrangling, the five paintings were returned in 2006. The chief crusader in this victory was Maria Altmann, the niece of Adele Bloch-Bauer.

O'Connor's book offers an excellent background on Jewish life in turn of the century Vienna. She profiles the Bloch-Bauer family members, their fortunes and individual fates. And she takes time to detail the many complications of a restitution argument and how the case was won.

The Lady in Gold, Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I, sold in 2006 for $135 million.

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

The Goldfinch is Donna Tartt's third novel in twenty years. The title refers to Carel Fabritius' 17th-century painting, portraying a bird perched on top of its feeder with a leg chained to prevent flight. The story of the novel unfolds as a first person account by a young man, Theo Decker, who begins the tale when a terrorist bomb explodes in a New York museum.  He is thirteen at the time of the incident. He and his mother are visitors at the museum, and the mother is killed. With the explosion, the painting comes into Theo's possession. Remembering his mother's admiration of the painting, he hides the painting, reluctant to part with it. Over the next decade Theo and the painting journey from New York to Las Vegas to New York to Amsterdam. Will he be the hero of his story? Contemplating themes of fate and character, he seems to come to terms with his life so far.

The first impressions of this book may be of the writing, described by critics as "intoxicating," "elegant," and "breathtaking." Tartt's stories are always driven by her characters and each character is fully, richly developed. Her descriptions plant a vivid image of personality and manner of speaking. There are detours and distractions in the story but every detail matters, each fitting into what is a masterpiece of storytelling that deservedly won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2014.

The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters

After losing both brothers in WWI and her father shortly thereafter, Frances Wray can no longer support herself or her mother, and both are at risk of losing their majestic home in a wealthy suburb of London. Forced to take in borders to help pay the bills, Lillian and Leonard Barber, a boisterous young couple from the lower clerical caste, move into the upstairs rooms and quickly alter the staid, reserved atmosphere in the house. Initially, Leonard appears charming and vibrant, even if there is something about him that Frances does not trust. She does, however, find Lillian's bohemianism to be a welcome change. Everything moves along smoothly for a time, but then incidents begin to happen that make Frances question whether the Barbers' marriage is truly a happy one. Embroiled in the Barbers' affairs, Frances can sense tragedy is coming but has no idea how unprepared she is for the consequences nor the things she will agree to for love...

1922 was a tumultuous time. Unemployment was high after WWI, and gender and class inequalities were dramatically shifting causing uneasiness throughout London. Waters uses this edgy backdrop to mirror and escalate the instability inside the Wrays' home. Fans of historical fiction, postwar fiction, romance, and crime novels will find much to like. If you enjoyed The Paying Guests, check out more of Sarah Water's works and my personal favorite, The Night Watch.