Cloud Cuckoo Land: Aspires to be Phenomenal but Fails.

Posted On April 24, 2022

HI Readers! Happy Sunday! As you know, I have a big pile of TBR. Among this, there are a few big books. On a whim, I decided to finally read Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr. It was a disappointment, but I am glad that I am finally done with it. Before you read this, I want to tell you all that I had rated Anthony Doerr’s ‘All the Light We Cannot See’ at 5/5 stars & had loved it beyond love! So, it pains me that I could not love or even like this one.

~~MULTIPLE CHARACTERS ACROSS MULTIPLE STORY LINES~~

I feel that no matter how excellent a writer is, they should not keep more than 2 or 3 perspectives & parallels. Only probably 5% of the writers will be successful in getting away with it & especially if it’s a series. Writers like Brandon Sanderson & George R. R. Martin & a few more have done it brilliantly. But, putting 6 characters across 3 story lines in a 600-page book seems a tad much.

In Cloud Cuckoo Land, the first story line is in present day 2020 Idaho where we meet Xeno & Seymour. There is another story line in the 1400s Constantinople where we meet Anna & Omeir. The third story line is set a few years in the future where we meet 14-year-old Konstance. And then, there is a fourth story line which aspires to connect all the others, which is essentially the story within the story of Cloud Cuckoo Land where we meet Aethon. Too much, isn’t it? If all these connected beautifully towards the end, I would have enjoyed it. But, it felt like the author was finding scraps & bits to connect all these stories.

About the characters, let me start with my favourite Konstance. This was a no brainer. A young girl alone in a spaceship trying to find the meaning of her existence & what has been her home since birth. I quite liked her story line. Now, contrasting this to the one I did not care for – Anna & Omeir. The book would have been better without them. There is only a fragile link which connects them to the larger picture. And, for that fragile link we had to read the boring lives of Anna & Omeir in the 1400s. Then comes Xeno & Seymour. These two were the mediocre. Nothing great, but not too bad either.

My main problem with this kind of hopeful characterization was that initially we are introduced to them when they are all grown up. And, then immediately we have to read about 5 people’s childhood till adulthood. This was supremely confusing. If I hadn’t written down notes, I would not have been able to recollect whose mother is whom, who is the one with a scar on his face, who is an orphan. So, I found multiple challenges to read these multiple characters across multiple story lines!

~~WHERE’S THE CONTENT IN THESE 600 PAGES?~~

I remember reading 200 pages & wanting to quit reading the book. I also thought over what I read & what I concluded was far less than how it should be in 200 pages. There was no lasting impact of the story on me. I forgot about the book when I paused it. There wasn’t that urgency of ‘I wonder what happens next’ when I was eating or working or walking or napping. No. There was nothing memorable that would make me want to pick it up.

Yes, there’s already a lot going on as I mentioned above. But, there is also NOT a lot going on. There are paragraphs after paragraphs of prose referencing mythological characters. Did I ask for it in a Historical Fiction book? No. Did I had to read it forcefully anyway? Yes. Such stories & a lot of other prose contributed to the nothingness of the content which made the book forgettable for me.

Believe it or not, I also questioned myself for not liking the book. It made me feel inadequate. I thought that maybe I was only at Level 15 & maybe I will love & appreciate this book when I reach Level 23. Thankfully, that was not it.

~~THE CONNECTING STORY LINE OF AETHON~~

Aethon going away to find the Cloud Cuckoo Land is the shortest story with one-page additions at various intervals. But this minuscule story is connected to every other story. This book Cloud Cuckoo Land was written by Antonius Diogenes many centuries ago. This book was discovered by Anna in the 1400s. After a few years, her husband Omeir returns the book because of its value to someone in the city of Urbina. Apparently, it’s again ruined because of battles & seasons. Then, it is found in some ruins & news of this reaches Xeno. He tries to translate it from Greek to English from whatever little is left of it. 5 children take to the story & decide to make a play of it under Xeno’s direction. One of these children turns out to be Konstance’s great grandmother.

And, that is why this novel by Anthony Doerr is dedicated to librarians. We see how wonderfully one book passes on for generations & centuries. You never know what connection a book might have & how old. This was impressive to think about retrospectively. But, during the story & even after reading it, it looks like quite a fragile link to connect so much.

~~LIFE LESSONS~~

We understand the value of books, libraries & librarians from this novel. The message is so mildly existing throughout the book, that if it weren’t for the dedication, not many would have understood the true meaning.

We also see how forests which are home to rare birds & animals are cut down to build residential buildings & offices. We are murdering our Earth by promoting capitalism. Climate crises is real, and every individual needs to adopt a sustainable lifestyle.

We are also illuminated to what I can assume is the dark web, and how terrorists use it to brainwash adolescents by incorporating their propaganda through what the adolescents are passionate about. This also leads to the importance of mental health among young adults.

There were a few life lessons in this one, but these are vital to our existence.

~~CONCLUSION~~

Cloud Cuckoo Land tries its best to be phenomenal, but fails on several counts. The excessiveness of it, whether in terms of characters or story lines or connectedness or the narration, is simply overreaching to a place that does not exist. It was tedious to read this book which led me to have a poor reading experience. I had loved Anthony Doerr’s writing in ‘All the Light We Cannot See’. So, naturally, I had high expectations. But, the spark, charm, wit & humor in that book is entirely missing in this one. I have rated Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr’s at 2/5 stars.

Until next time,