Where to begin. It's rare to have a book I both love and hate. This one qualifies.

I love Anthony Doerr's writing. He's descriptive. His writing can be beautiful. He's imaginative.

But . . . . this book is very hard to follow. There are multiple plot lines running concurrently. There must be 100 characters. I was simply unable to read the first quarter of the book with any level of interest. Had it not been a NetGalley assignment, I'd have put it down . . . . and I never don't finish a book.

Yes, the multiple stories eventually unite. The last half of the book is likely four stars. But that first quarter is barely a one.

Sorry, Anthony. I'm sure you poured months of research and thoughts and planning to make Cloud Cuckoo Land a defining project. You overdid it.

I wanted to love Doerr’s new book… I adored All the Light We Cannot See. I thought it was a tour de force that will be read for generations.. a classic. This newest effort was pre-reviewed and the raves were ecstatic. He weaves together separate story lines and it reads like a short story collection, rather than a novel, at the onset. It takes a few chapters to conceptualize the timelines and the characters. His descriptive language is brilliant. When he invokes a scene, you can see it vividly. Whether he is in Constantinople or the wilds of Bulgaria, the reader is transported. This opus is a very long paean to the written word and its evolution through recorded history… and a very long paean it is! Too long! The disparate characters are linked to some degree by the end but Konstance is left out and it feels unfinished that her narrative is aborted. I so wanted to read and savor this novel but I could not. I felt letdown. I almost gave up reading it at times because my interest flagged. Perhaps he was a bit too ambitious in his attempt to link so many eras and personalities into a smooth flowing literary tome. I was delighted to be offered the advance copy nonetheless. I always delight in reading a sequel to the extraordinary effort of All the Light We Cannot See.

When I heard that Anthony Doerr had a new novel coming out, I was elated. "All The Light We Cannot See" is one of my favorite books. I then read a brief synopsis- three timelines, multiple narrators, historical fiction, sci-fi, greek mytholog, and 650+ pages. It made me pause, but it's Doerr, so I dove in. And reader, it was so worth it. This book does require some patience to become acquainted with the structure and characters.

There are three general time periods in "Cloud Cuckoo Land", and similar to his previous book chapters are short and narrated by different characters. It is a bit more of a learning curve as unlike in his previous book where one had to just keep track of two voices, you have five here. All these characters are connected by a book that details Aethon's journey to become a bird and fly to Cloud Cuckoo Land. We start in the 15th century in Constantinople. Anna, a young woman, lives with her sister in a house of women who embroider clothing for priests. She learns to read and finds and cherishes the book. Omeir is a young man who grows up in the country with his two loyal oxen and he is conscripted to join the sultan's army to invade Constantinople, all while being ostracized and feared due to his cleft lip/palate.

In the present time, we meet Zeno, who is an old man staging a play of Cloud Cuckoo Land at the local library. He was a prisoner of war in Korea, where he fell in love with the Greek language and translates Cloud Cuckoo Land. The dramatic pulse of this timeline is that there is a bomb placed by Seymour, a young troubled man, who wants to make statement about the changing world.

In the last timeline, Konstance lives on a ship that is traveling to another planet and houses all the knowledge in the world, but something does not appear right. She is determined to find out what is happening.

There are a lot of plot points too keep track of, and how all these narratives are connected is not laid out until late, but stick with it. It's worthwhile and emotional. As with any novel with several characters, I found some stories more engaging than others. I especially felt for Zeno and Omeir. I had some reservations with the portrayal of Seymour's mental health and his actions. Doerr's writing is fantastic, as always. His highlighting of the relationship between people and animals was particularly touching. And any book that's main focus is ultimately on the love for books and reading touch my soul. I will be thinking about this one for a while, and cannot wait for what Doerr comes up with next. This was quite the feat!

Thank you to NetGalley and Scribner Books for providing me with an advance reader copy in exchange for honest review.

Whoa Nelly! What a complex, multi-faceted, shoot-for-the-moon novel! I don’t know how Anthony Doerr did it - multiple narratives from multiple time periods - with multiple stories - in a mammoth 650+ page book that, at the last page, left me amazed. I am not (!!!) a magical realism reader and yet I decided, based on Mr Doerr’s previous novel, to hang on and enjoy the ride - and enjoy I did. It’s lovely and poignant and, for me, described the inter-connectivity in all of us - and how beautiful is that? Heartfelt thanks to Scribner for the advanced copy. I’m grateful.

I enjoyed this book very much! Not my typical genre but I loved it! Very smartly written with a nice flow to it. Loved all the characters and how they were all joined together.

Cloud Cuckoo Land is my new favorite novel. I don't say that lightly.

I loved Doerr's All The Light We Cannot See-adored it in fact. This novel, however, is transcendent.

There are five narrators spanned across centuries and continents: Anna, a young orphan living in Constantinople in 1453 at the time of the siege and sacking of the city; Omeir, a young man from the mountains of Bulgaria in the mid-15th century with a cleft palate who is recruited by the Sultan's armies to conquer Constantinople; Zeno, an elderly, closeted gay man and Korean War veteran in Idaho in 2020 who has never been comfortable in his own skin; Seymour, a poor, young man with a sensory disorder whose heartbreak over the harm done to the environment leads him to do horrible things in 2020; and Konstance, a young woman floating through space to a new world, some year in the future.

One thing ties them together: a long-forgotten novel by an ancient Greek writer about a shepherd who seeks high and low for a fictional paradise in the sky: Cloud Cuckoo Land.

This story is genuinely so beautiful, and it is immaculately written. It's about the threads that tie all of humanity together across time and space, forever burning and searching for life, love, hope, and home. Life is hell, and it's joyous, and it's devastating, and it's hopeful all at the same time. These characters are all so fully-fleshed out that it feels like you have known them forever. Now I'm just sitting here, staring at the screen, thinking about how this novel has just taken up residence in my heart.

Wow! I read this slowly because I wanted to savor a new book by a favorite author, and I'm so glad I did. I got to live in this world for over a month and I'm so sad it's over. Yes, there are a lot of characters and story lines to keep track of, but the way Doerr weaves them is nothing short of brilliant. I was so very moved by this book. Don't let the length or number of story lines deter you, this book is BEAUTIFUL

DNF at 41%

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for letting me receive an ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I really don't like DNFing an arc but I've been struggling to read this for almost three months now and I'm still not getting into it. Every time I think about picking it up again, I physically get tired and think about how I would rather be reading something else. Which is a shame because this was one of my most anticipated books of 2021. I didn't love Anthony Doerr's All the Light We Cannot See but I had a good feeling about this one since it included many things I like: books about books, connecting stories between the past, present, and future; it had potential. But this book just kept dragging, dwelling on details I didn't think were important, and for a book that is 640 pages long, it's important to keep the reader's attention. I had a similar problem with All the Light We Cannot See so if you liked that book you might like this one, but if you didn't, I would suggest avoiding this one.

I was originally going to give this book two stars but realized that wouldn't really make sense considering I ended up not finishing it.

1/5

This one was beautiful. I expected it to be and I was not let down. Though I'm not sure how to even express all my feelings about this book in a review. But, I'll try...

Doerr knows how to write deep, thought-provoking characters. He's an expert in my opinion. Every character from this story is going to stay with me, Konstance and her bravery, Omeir and his love for all living things, Anna and her determination, and the hero in both Zeno and Seymour (thought two very different heroes). Many of them reminded me of people that I know and love, so it was hard not to love them as well despite their flaws. Even though there are multiple plot lines going on, I never once confused them. Doerr writes so well in these compact chapters that it was easy to keep things straight. Those short chapters also made this one very addictive!

Of course the writing was gorgeous and I could feel myself in the shoes of the characters in each scene. I could go on and on about that, but I really feel like what is most important in this book is the message. I get it. This is something that this author is great at writing about. He can show us something as hopeless as what we are doing to our planet or how we hurt each other and then turn it into something that gives us hope for ways we can make things better. Just like in All The Light We Cannot See, this one shows two sides to the world and to people, and how we can choose to see either. This book is very different from his Pulitzer book, but it's just as big of a feat.

The overarching theme of the story of Aethon was clever. I could see it intertwined with each character and despite not having heard a word about it until this book, I think I'll remember it with all those other Greek stories I learned in school. It's an important tale and I feel like it should be touched on more, even if just for the fact to show people that maybe many of us are luckier than we realize.

I definitely recommend this story. It'll transport you to an entirely new world while grounding you at the same time.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

One of the Best Books I’ve Ever Read

There are times when you read a book that is profoundly, emotionally true. It plucks your heartstrings and rings within you as pure as a bell. Cloud Cuckoo Land is such a story. The novel is spread across three locales and timelines, Constantinople in the 1400’s, Idaho in the present, and a spacecraft in 2064. A book, a story, a myth weaves the characters and times together.

Doerr’s rich prose takes us on a journey through dark times but the redemptive power of story heals the characters - and us. A wonderful story is an experience that has the ability to inspire and light our way through difficult days. A prominent author recently said, “We must restory ourselves.” Anna, one of the characters in Cloud Cuckoo Land, says “”Some stories can be both false and true at the same time.” Emotional truth does not depend on facts.

I will read this book again and again. I wanted to slow down during this first reading to immerse myself in the stunning use of language that Doerr places on the page. But the story was too compelling and took me over. So that immersion will wait until my 2nd or 3rd pass.

A captivating story lives on in the questions we ponder upon finishing it. Poet David Whyte asks, “What are the beautiful questions for the rest of your life?” Cloud Cuckoo Land helps illuminate those beautiful questions.

I get why some people won’t like this novel. It builds a story around an Ancient Greek text and the ravages our planet receives, be it from war, climate change, or greed. But the characters from the sacking of Constantinople, World War II, present day, and the future all tie together through the Greek text. I loved this story.

Not sure why this missed the mark for me. I couldn't connect well with the characters and the story felt confusing. Maybe the fantasy aspect just was not for me. I did enjoy this book.

thanks for the arc!

So lucky to have received this advance copy from Net Galley & Simon & Schuster - many, many thanks.

Forget the 5 stars, this is an automatic 10 stars! I don't think I've ever read anything quite like it. Not sure what I expected after All the Light We Cannot See, but I was not disappointed. So many genres, time lines, characters, story lines, but I had no trouble following them. It is GENIUS! Destined to be his masterpiece. Highly recommend!

Oof, I tried and tried. This one is going to need a reboot for me to get it to it. I love the cover and the author, the book is a DNF though.

I handed it off to my high school aged nephew and he’s stalling too.

An imaginative, epic journey this novel had adventure, historical elements, fantasy, and sci-fi all in one. There aren't enough superlatives. There are masterpieces of individual stories that are woven together to create completely beautiful writing. Prepare to immerse yourself and binge read!

Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read and review Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr. This is my second book that I've read by him (previously read All the Light We Cannot See). This book will be published in September 2021.
This book was both complex and intriguing for me. It is set in three different time frames- the past (the year 1453) which took place near the city of Constantinople, the present, which mostly took place in a small town in Idaho, and decades into the future. Each time line had one or more main characters all linked to the Greek myth Aethon. It was amazing how Doerr was able to interweave this Greek myth into all three time lines. The characters were very complex and you couldn't avoid hoping for the best outcome for each one. The author is a master with the complex language he writes. It helped that I was reading this on my Nook and could use the dictionary to better grasp some of the language.
I was not sure if this was a good pick for me and it took me a while to become immersed in it, but when I did, I couldn't put it down. It's part science fiction, part historical fiction, fantasy and Greek mythology. The book is over 600 pages long and the chapters are fairly short. As a reader of this book, I was anxious to see how each separate story/timeline finally gelled at the end. The ending pulled everything together.

5 Creative, Crafted Shining stars
“Part fairy tale, part fool’s errand, part science-fiction, part utopian satire…”
I had high expectations for Cloud Cuckoo Land, as one of my absolute favorite books is All the Light We Cannot See. It took a few chapters introducing characters and settings that varied from Middle Ages to the Korean War, to the present and into in the future. The narrative travels through time and place (Constantinople, Idaho, Iceland, London, Korea) – all with different protagonists – and twists around again but remains clear and connected. Be a little bit patient when starting, it’s so worth it.

Delightful and charming details abound. “Boys call her Mosquito because she won’t leave them alone.” “The child blinks up at them with dark, memorizing eyes.” “Folded inside that seed is a whole wilderness.” Doerr molds words into poetry. “Rain pelts her sweat-soaked hair…. It seems so incredibly, dangerously promiscuously wasteful: clear water, given from the sky, in such quantities…. The blue rim of dawn is turning pink, raising its fingers to push back the night.” This is why I read.

Only the most talented author could get me to care about two bulls in the 1400s and their cleft palate marred owner. Doerr takes the underdogs and the quietly brave and infuses them with hope. Cloud Cuckoo Land is an epic adventure story.

”…the tale I have to tell is so ludicrous so incredible, that you’ll never believe a word of it – and yet, It’s true. For I, the one they called birdbrain and nincompoop – yet, I dull-witted muttonheaded lamebrained Aethon – once traveled all the way to the edge of the earth and beyond…” Enjoy the journey!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I am truly grateful for this book that I will also purchase, share, and reread.

This was a well-written and intricate story. The plot was engaging and well-paced. Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced copy of the book.

Wow. This book is crazy bizarre and intricate, the premise sounds like it should be a mess but the more you look the more you see the connections and narrative cohesiveness. It was delightful to see the depths of how much each timeline was connected to the others in themes and characterization. I could go on about the characters, the way the meta-narrative of the Greek play Cloud Cukoo Land seamlessly flowed through the time frames giving a sense of narrative spiraling, but mostly I want to comment how much this book hit me. As a post-Covid novel, you can feel the way these characters all felt like the world was ending, the crazy uncertainty and fear (especially the future timeline in space). You get this overwhelming sense that life is fragile, plans get ruined, and world ending events are closer than we ever like to imagine but there is still a lot of beauty to be found too.

While I typically enjoy historical fiction, I had difficulty getting into this story. It wasn't necessarily a bad book. It's just not the kind of story I enjoy.