This was a simply brilliant book.

I found all the separate storylines compelling and the way the ancient script united all the characters kept me going even if there were moments of uncertainty/confusion.

Doerr has a way of writing about violence without gore, and he infuses humanity into every character--from the ox tender with the heart of gold to the imprisioned soldiers motivated to live for academia.

I'll be recommending this for a long time.

ARC provided by NetGalley & the publisher—Scribner—in exchange for an honest review.

Doerr does it again! I genuinely adore and love this story. The writing, the characters, the complexities, the themes...masterfully crafted. If you love All the Light We Cannot See, you will also love Cloud Cuckoo Land.

Setting: Across 3 different timelines (Constantinople in the 1400's, a present-day contemporary story in Idaho and the Korean War, and then sometime in the future in space).

Characters: This is where Doerr shines. Omeir, a hairlipped male who connects more with animals than people. Anna, a female who loves her sister, is an orphan, and learns at a young age how to read and has a general sense of curiosity about the world. Seymour, an anxiety-ridden male who may also be autistic (not explicitly called out, but lots of mention of sensory sensitivity). Neno, a closeted man who served in Korea, fell in love with language, and lives a modest life. Konstance, a young girl in space who thinks that maybe there is something more to life than hurtling through space to inhabit a new planet because Earth has been destroyed. But these are only the main human characters. There are a plethora of side human characters as well. Arguably some of my favorite characters are the non-human counterparts. There is Trustyfriend, a great grey owl in Idaho. Moonlight and Tree, the reliable twin oxen companions for Omeir. Sybil, the gigantic AI "conscious" of the spacecraft where Konstance lives. All are masterfully crafted, unique, fully formed, and realistic. A+ to Doerr!

Plot: Across multiple timelines, these characters each encounter their own coming of age stories, connected through the work The Birds by Aristophanes. I don't want to give a lot away because the way this story unfolds is in part what makes it so beautiful. I will say, I think this is what The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern wanted to be, but this actually had a point. Not to criticize Morgenstern's work, as it has lyrical prose that rivals most, but at the end of that story I felt like "what did I read?" whereas at the end of Cloud Cuckoo Land I had a very satisfactory reaction. Also, as an owl lover, I greatly appreciated the symbolism of owls throughout the story as well.

Themes: Interactions between humans and nature, What it means to be human, Drive/persistence of "life finds a way", the desire for seeking more beyond what we have today, interactions/juxtaposition between nature v technology and life v destruction, Love, the concept that some things can disappear in a blink while others, but for the grace of god, persist.

Tropes/Devices: multiple timelines, a story about stories, character-driven plot, beautiful writing

Criticism: I will say at 650 pages this is a chunky book! There could have been a little more editing in some of the chapters to parse it down a bit, but I do think that everything connected well at the end. I like the use of The Birds throughout, but at times it did become a little wearing. Also, many of the characters do die in the story, but none of these were full on surprises to the reader, as Doerr would plant the seeds or flat out tell you of "future events to come" earlier in other timelines. Sometimes I'd rather have the story unfold "without spoilers", but it worked alright in this piece I suppose.

Final thoughts: I was in a bit of a reading slump before picking this up. It helped snap me out of that slump and I savored this while reading it. I can tell why Doerr took so much time between this novel and All the Light -- truly a piece of art.

All the Light We Cannot See is one of my top five reads of all time and so I was ecstatic when I was approved for an ARC of Doerr’s newest book on Netgalley.

And then I spent the first 100 pages super confused about what was happening. Some storylines really drew me in and others felt like they abruptly pulled me out of the story and felt disjointed. I get what the author was trying to accomplish, but I don’t think the payoff was there in the end. The storylines didn’t culminate in such a way that justified having six of them.

In the end I wish he had focused on 2 (or maybe 4) of the storylines, I think it would’ve been enough.

I received a copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This beautifully woven tale of a story that travels through time, from Ancient Greece, to the 1400s, to the present day, and to the future. The draw of a good book, and the treasures held in libraries, and the joy of passing down a story through the years are all background themes as Cloud Cuckoo Land unrolls. I had trouble putting the story down, and I look forward to rereading it with my book club.

Cloud Cuckoo Land is a book about societies on the brink of disaster. Linking each these narratives is the ancient Greek story of Aethon, an Odysseus-like figure whose journey is told both in-between chapters as well as through the characters' narratives. Aethon's story, aptly titled Cloud Cuckoo Land, unites the individual disaster narratives by reminding readers about the passage of time and how the past is preserved and carried into the future.

Anna is an orphaned child living within Constantinople in the years leading up to the Ottoman Empire's siege of the city, which had previously been thought to be impenetrable. Omeir is a boy ripped from his home and conscripted to fight for the Sultan. As the army gathers outside of the city and a massive new cannon is aimed at the walls, residents are forced to reckon with the impending destruction of life as they know it. As the walls begin to crumble, Anna smuggles out a copy of Aethon's story as a monument to what once was using Omeir as an unlikely accomplice.

Zeno is a young boy growing up in Lakeport, Idaho who joins the army during the Korean War and quickly becomes a POW in a Chinese camp. While there he meets Rex, a fellow British POW and former classics instructor, who teaches Zeno Greek letters and translation to pass the time and keep one another sane. Many years later, Zeno uses these skills to translate the newly discovered papyrus containing Aethon's story, buried by Omeir nearly 500 years prior. When it is complete he and a group of children put on its production in the Lakeport library as a way to pass on the tale. On the last day of rehearsals, a young man named Seymour plants a bomb in the library hoping to send a message about the overdevelopment of the area, the destruction of wildlife, and the impending disasters wrought by climate change.

Finally, Konstance is a child living aboard Argos, a spaceship containing what readers are led to believe are some of the last humans in existence forced to flee a not-so-distant future version of earth that has been destroyed by climate change. Konstance passes her time exploring a digitized version of earth available to the ship's inhabitants, until a deadly contagion permeates the crew and she must use Aethon's story relayed to her by her father to recalibrate her perception of life and the future.

If this feels like a lot, it's because it is. However, Doerr is a masterful writer who is able to connect stories so seemingly removed from one another, while at the same time addressing larger themes about human resilience in the face of inevitable demise. I am usually not a big fan of books that address disaster and apocalypses so directly, but the varied ways that Doerr approaches the subject makes for a beautiful and haunting story.

The review can be found at my blog here: https://bookhouseblog.substack.com

This is the sort of book that leaves you with that warm-honey-flowing-through-your-veins feeling, but also with a nagging sense that you won't be reading anything this good any time soon.

I have to be one of the only people I know that didn't read All the Light We Cannot See - I put it off for years and then it became one of those "everyone else read and loved it and now it can only be a letdown" type of books for me, but knowing how beloved that book is, I was excited to dive deep into Cloud Cuckoo Land. It exceeded every expectation. The writing is beautiful: poetic, intense, lovely, the kind of passages I'll re-read ten times just to savor a few turns of phrase.

Other reviews and the publisher summary do an excellent job condensing the plot, so what I'll say is this: Cloud Cuckoo Land is a story about outsiders and dreamers, characters hoping for a better future while longing for a cherished version of the past. There's the obvious theme of human-wrought destruction: climate change, war, many others. And in the face of this suffering, each of the primary characters serves as a steward: of animals, of the environment, of an ancient story that knits its way through each of their lives in unexpected and fantastic ways. I cared so deeply for kind-hearted, gentle Zeno and curious, fiery Konstance. I even empathized with the antagonist, insofar as he can be considered such. It's perfection.

Truly I don't think I have the words to do this review any justice, but I can see myself evangelizing for this book for years.

I absolutely loved Anthony Doerr's previous book, All the Light We Cannot See and recommended it to all my family and friends to read. Needless to say, I was extremely excited to receive Cloud Cuckoo Land. The story was enveloping--I could NOT put it down, as I cared for each character and silently cheered them on! Sometimes the chapters ended too quickly and I wished I could have spent more time with that character before moving onto the next. I loved that this book is about libraries, books and librarians as they have a positive effect on so many lives.

Have you ever read a book and you just think : "what a breathtaking and captivating read"? Well, that is exactly what I think after I read All The Light We Cannot See years ago, and now, I think of it again after I read Cloud Cuckoo Land. It's really amazing to think that there are people who can write a book beautifully, and luckily, Anthony Doerr is one of the best among them. Words can't describe how beautiful this book is, but what I do know : if you haven't read Anthony Doerr's books yet, you should give it a try and I guarantee that you will never regret you made the decision. I love that this book centers around a magical Greek-based story, and the cover adds the magical realism to the book. Thank you NetGalley and Scribner for the free ARC, and also to Anthony Doerr for writing such a beautiful book❤. I am really grateful I got to read this beautiful and oh-so-remarkable book.

Do you ever let out a deep exhale after finishing a book? The type of exhale where you know you are forever changed, in even the smallest way, by experiencing that book? The story has come to an end on paper but begins a new life in your cognitive life experience. I let out this exhale after finishing 'All the Light We Cannot See', and the same contemplative exhale after finishing 'Cloud Cuckoo Land'.

Doerr has written another masterful piece in which stories are spun together with fine silk prose, connecting one character's story to the next. I initially raised an eyebrow at the thought of exploring multiple characters across three distinct time periods without the story turning too convoluted or losing the depth and meaning Doerr is known for. Any initial trepidation I had was abated two chapters in, and I was instantly engulfed in the worlds the story creates. This story goes above time to deeply connect the reader to the fragility of life, the chaos, and confusion of what it means to be quintessentially human and is a literary morsel to be savored. By far, one of my all-time favorite books, you will not be disappointed.

Wow! I just finished this book and what an amazing feeling. I want to talk, write and read more about it. This is my best book of 2021 so far and Doerr remains one of my favorite authors who just gets better and better. This has everything I want in a novel and such a satisfying ending. SO much work has gone into providing the reader with an amazing experience with a few lessons and nudges to do and be a better citizen of the world.

Thank you to Anthony Doerr, Net Galley and Scribner for an advanced copy of this book for a review. I LOVED it. I was SO excited when I saw my request was approved. I had no idea what to expect as I chose it simply because I loved Doerr’s All the Light We Cannot See. This book is completely different. To be honest, I’m not sure how to describe it as it includes history, romance, suspense, science fiction and possibly more genres.

Despite using three very distinct timelines and at least five main characters this is still an easy enough read. That takes talent and work! I read in two days and was completely hooked for the last half. This book is engaging and entertaining as we switch between past, present and future worlds with unrelated people and plots. Even within each timeline, we get back stories and flashbacks that help flesh out the plot, the characters and their motivations. I trusted Doerr to connect the dots and it does all connect but not in a tidy neat way. It’s complicated but understandable and believable without being a “happy” ending.

Anyone who loves books and libraries will be in heaven with this book. It really showcases the human need to tell stories; how storytelling connects us and teaches us over generations. I love how the people in this book take care of and honor stories and books and appreciate their power to heal, soothe, teach and connect us. The fact that it is dedicated to librarians says it all.

The descriptions of earth from Konstance made me nostalgic for a planet I live on. I guess I’ll appreciate it more now. Despite how bad things can be, we end with a strong note of hope. The human being will fight for life and survive despite the hardships and suffering. And there is a lot of suffering in this book. Until about the 75% mark, I was feeling a lot of doom and dread, but it does turn around and in a way that was foreshadowed all along. I guess the lesson is to be more optimistic and trust in the natural yearning to not just survive but to grow, improve, and leave things better for the next generation.

So I've waffled around trying to articulate my feelings about this book and the truth is, I think reviewing it is difficult because I neither hated it nor loved it. All the Light We Cannot See made an impact and I found it gripping and engaging the whole way. This novel, however, was confusing and made me lose interest part of the way. Although all the storylines and timelines come to make sense and fall together in the end, I found the length of this novel tiresome and there were times I skimmed a little just to get through it. Overall, I liked it, but it wasn't anywhere near as gripping and powerful as All the Light...

Plus, I think the title is clunky sounding. I don't love it.

Regardless, thank you so much to Scribner and Netgalley for providing me an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I don't think my words can do justice to how amazing this book is. I loved All The Light We Cannot See and it is always on my top list of books to share/recommend. Cloud Cuckoo Land now will be on my "must read" and "must share" list of books. The writing is so beautiful and the characters are so carefully developed that I didn't want it to end. The premise of the book revolves around an Ancient Greek story that is shared in 15th century Constantinople, present day Idaho, and in the distant future - the thread of the story and the characters connections are beautifully woven. I am not one who often re-reads a book but this is one I know I will pick up again. Bravo Anthony Doerr!

I’m so uncomfortable writing a review for this book. At the half-way point I was completely uncertain about what was happening. But the writing and the various characters were very engaging.

There are three main characters in different times and locations. Anna is a girl in Constantinople in the mid-1400s. She and her sister Maria toil in an all female workshop where Maria is one of several women embroidering lovely fabrics for priests.

In the 1940s we meet Zeno who went to war after Pearl Harbor and now as an octogenarian is organizing a children’s play in the local library.

Finally there is Konstance who is a young girl heading through space. It is somewhere in the future and she is part of a human experiment.

Connecting all of them is the story of Aethon, a character from an ancient Greek manuscript called Cloud Cuckoo Land. The three characters reveal the story to us through alternating chapters.

Gradually I had a dawning awareness of the bigger picture. I should have been confident in Doerr’s plan and I should have relaxed into the worlds he was building for each of the characters with his beautiful writing. I’ve seen really strong ratings and great early reviews for this book but I’m going to hazard a guess that it won’t be for all readers. It is nothing like Doerr’s *All the Light We Cannot See*. I guess this one most reminded me of Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell (not sure I can defend that comp in any way, just a feeling.) It’s another wonderful story by Doerr in a really big package—nearly 700 pages. I guess my advice if you are reading it and feel undecided, keep on going. Much becomes clear in the end.

Thank you to @scribnerbooks
for this #advancereaderscopy.

4.5 stars! This is a beautifully written, carefully plotted tale of epic proportions. It blends narratives set in 1453 Constantinople (during the seige), in 2020 and sometime in the next century. A few things did bother me: (1) The past and present-day story lines are much more compelling and better developed than the futuristic section. (2) The book ran very long; some parts could have been trimmed or removed. (3) The title did not grab me; I think it could deter some folks from selecting this book.

All griping aside, Cloud Cuckoo Land is a wonderful, new work from a brilliant writer,

Oh man I just can't. I tried to enjoy this book and stay engaged. But the multiple storylines in multiple decades and universes lost me. Plus, I lost interest trying to figure out how they were linked together. I loved All the Light We Cannot See and had such high hopes for this one, but it fell oh so flat.

I requested this book because: ANTHONY DOERR! This is a complex tale with multiple story lines that gradually come together. It's a slow burn that picked up [for me] about 3/4 through.

"Set in Constantinople in the fifteenth century, in a small town in present-day Idaho, and on an interstellar ship decades from now...a soaring story about children on the cusp of adulthood in worlds in peril, who find resilience, hope—and a book."

Anna, a 13-year old orphan, lives in a house of women with her ailing sister, Maria, both embroidering the robes of priests. She finds a book [another part of her life] "...the story of Aethon, who longs to be turned into a bird so that he can fly to a utopian paradise in the sky."

Omeir, a hare-lipped village boy [probably my favorite character], eventually crosses paths with Anna.

Zeno, who works in a library in Lakeport, Idaho, and "...who learned Greek as a prisoner of [the Korean] war, rehearses five children in a play adaptation of Aethon’s story--Cloud Cuckoo Land, preserved against all odds through centuries." Zeno is my second favorite character; I found his [back]story compelling.

Seymour, a troubled teenager being raised by his single, down-on-her-luck mother, plants a bomb in same library.

And Konstance, on the interstellar ship Argos, abandoned by her parents, is alone in a vault with Sybil, who is an Alexa-like device [I guess].

All these characters are "dreamers and outsiders" connected by Aethon's story--which is interspersed throughout the novel.

Often bleak and somber, with very little, if any humor. For me, this was a challenging read until I got into the rhythm and was wholly invested.

A combination of historical fiction [Constantinople], science fiction/fantasy {Konstance] reality [Seymour, Zeno]. It is beautifully written, but sometimes tedious [also, the dystopian part just not for me.]

Some phrases/sentences that display far more than their few words:

"praying behind her eyes"
"moles on her throat that look like beetles paralyzed mid-crawl"
"the hem of night"
"Beneath their wimples the faces of the nuns of the order resemmble dried thistles, colorless and brittle: none look younger than a century."
"Huge white stones lie among weeds like the lost molars of giants."
I could go on and on.

I had to look up more than a few words--mostly technical/scientific.

Is is a coincidence that the librarian's name is Marian? [and the book is dedicated to librarians].

So recommend, but prepare yourself for a long, slow read.

I really enjoyed Anthony Doerr's most recent book, All the Light We Cannot See, so I jumped at the chance for an advance reader's copy of his new novel. Thanks to NetGalley for providing it!

I loved this book. I'm a fan of sprawling novels with intersecting narratives, and that's what this is. To add to the fun, those intersecting narratives take place in different time periods. There are five main protagonists: Anna and Omeir in 15th century Constantinople and the surrounding area (before, during, and after the siege), Seymour and Zeno in 20th-21st century Idaho, and Konstance on a spacecraft in the future. The stories are connected by an ancient Greek codex called Cloud Cuckoo Land, which is also excerpted in Doerr's novel.

The premise of the ancient story is that the narrator writes it to comfort his dying niece. It is diverting because it's an adventure about a man who seeks to escape his circumstances by transforming into a bird, but of course a lot of things go wrong when he tries to do that. The story is lost and rediscovered many times over the centuries, but every time it pops up, it brings great comfort and even healing powers for those who read or hear it. It has an almost magical ability to help people escape their circumstances, whether those are an epic siege of a walled city, a lived life that haunts the reader, or a life spent in exile. There are some interesting similarities and differences between the <i>Cloud Cuckoo Land</i> story and the virtual reality Atlas that Konstance explores on her shop, too. Doerr seems to play with the idea of what is "real" - is it real life on Planet Earth, or a virtual experience that transports? Is it the present, the past, or our ability to connect the two?

I genuinely enjoyed spending hours of reading time with these characters. Unlike many of the ancient stories which feature gods and heroes, this book centers regular, everyday people ... though sometimes these characters do heroic things. Like us, they are subject to the extraordinary currents of their times, and they do the best they can with what they have. Perhaps there has never been a time period which wasn't extraordinary in its own way.

I look forward to re-reading this in physical format after it is published. The NetGalley app doesn't support highlighting, which I sorely missed. There are so many beautiful passages to which I want to return.

4.5 Stars on Goodreads. Review in exchange for an ARC from Netgalley.
This novel had adventure, historical elements, fantasy, and sci-fi all in one. If you like any genre at all, you would like at least something in this novel.

I was extremely excited to get a copy of Cloud Cuckoo Land after reading (and loving) All the Light We Cannot See. The story is set with different time periods: past, present, and future, and intertwines the lives of 5 characters (Anna, Omeir, Zeno, Seymour, and Konstance), around one Greek fable. You know how sometimes authors create characters that fall flat and are just the token extras in a book? Well this was not the case. Each character plays an important role in how the story develops, and each one has its own tale that needs to be told to continue.

The book is extremely imaginative in the plot and how the stories are worked together. I kept thinking I would be able to guess where they were going with one character, and be completely wrong. I was thrown into the story so much, that I felt I was there, right along side each character. Sometimes I would forget that I was just a reader, and not in the story itself. I will say the frequent back and forth of each character's story would get me sometimes. I would be so wrapped up in say Anna's story, that I would forget who Konstance was when I started her chapter. That might be a "me" problem though and not an author problem.

I do think the ending of each character fell flat; I wanted more. It was just slightly unremarkable how these characters each had great tasks throughout the whole novel, and then when the author was done with them, gave them swift endings that could have been more involved or detailed.

I would definitely recommend this book. I do not know how Doerr did it again, but he must have a muse on his shoulder as he writes his tales.

I really wanted to like this book, because the premise sounded really interesting. However, it was just such a struggle for me to keep track of the many different POVs and timelines. The POV sections were so short at a time that I found it difficult to maintain a connection to any characters or stories.

Usually I like multi-POV books but this one didn’t do it for me

Thank you to Netgalley and Scribner for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

An orphan girl at the fall of Constantinople. A man in a small town in Idaho. A young girl aboard a ship in the stars. Three timelines, all bound together by one book, one story.

I am categorically, unequivocally unwell after reading this book. All the Light We Cannot See is one of my favorite books of all time, and Cloud Cuckoo Land has been not only one of my most anticipated reads of the year but of the past five years, honestly. Admittedly, through the beginning of the book, I was worried it wasn't going to live up to my expectations--the beginning is slow, with multiple timelines and settings and characters that you're still getting to know. By the end, though? I think this book might be even better.

If there's one thing you can count on with an Anthony Doerr book, it's beautiful writing. Even before I was invested in the story, I was in awe of the way he crafts the story. Often, books fall into the trap of beautiful words without anything more--this had beautiful words and so much more. It was notable, too, how much Doerr has grown as an author since All the Light We Cannot See--the prose flows unfailingly, there is something lyrical in the way he writes. Honestly, I have a solid third of this book highlighted.

There are 5 main characters and 5 main storylines across three different timelines. By the end, I adored all of them and was moved to tears by all of them, but early on it was definitely a bit confusing. All the characters are completely seperate, and at that point there is nothing that links them. While I struggled a bit at first because of it, though, it made the story all the more impactful as everything began to come together. Using a story as the one thing that connects everyone was a brilliant creative choice.

Ultimately, I'm sure this book is not without its flaws, but as I write this review while still crying from the epilogue (as if Konstance and Zino's plotlines alone didn't make me sob several times before that), I'm too moved and impressed to think of any. The only real warning I can give: This book is LONG. I never wanted to put it down, but it still felt as if I'd read for hours and barely make any progress. But if that and the beginning are my only real critiques right now? I'd call that a pretty damn good book.