CLOUD CUCKOO LAND by Anthony Doerr

I received a gifted copy of CLOUD CUCKOO LAND by Anthony Doerr from Scribner Books.

Rating: 4.5 / 5

CLOUD CUCKOO LAND is a story that unfolds over three very different periods of time. In the earliest time period we are back in Constantinople following two different people. Anna is a young woman who is eager to learn to read. She finds the story of Aethon who wants to become a bird to travel up into the sky. In this same time period is Omeir, a young man who is conscripted into the army with his impressive oxen.

In a more modern setting we follow Zeno, a man who is helping a few children rehearse a presentation of Aethon’s story at the library. We’re also following a man who has been tasked with planting a bomb in that library to be set off after it is closed, not knowing that these children will be there after hours. In an unknown time we also follow Konstance, a young girl who is all alone in a room on a ship where she has been isolated for nearly a year. How she got there will be uncovered throughout the book, but we do know initially she is connected to the rest of the narrative because she is working to compile the remnants of Aethon’s story that has survived over time.

As I said when I was just starting this book, I was initially a bit intimidated by the size of this book – it is hefty. I’m happy to report that I was so immediately drawn in by the author’s writing and story that it didn’t at all feel like a 600 plus page read. I was the most intrigued by the mystery of Konstance’s situation, but I really enjoyed all of the different time periods and the ways they interconnected. Seeing the way a single text was love and perpetuated over the years was fantastic! The love of libraries also came through strongly!

In addition to this beautiful finished copy, I also was able to get the audiobook through Libro.FM and I thought that was well done also! I think it was beneficial to have the print copy in the beginning to get the characters and time periods straight in my mind before spending more time with the audio. Once I got going, the narration was great and I was easily able to follow the story shifts.

CLOUD CUCKOO LAND is out now and I would absolutely recommend it for your TBR!