Cloud Cuckoo Land - Anthony Doerr ------------------ 2 Stars

I think I had forgotten how much I disliked Doerr's first book, All the Light We Cannot See, when I decided to pick up his newest novel, Cloud Cuckoo Land. I had incorrectly remembered that I enjoyed his first book (should have read by my blog first!), so I thought his newest novel might be a great read too. Well, deja vu all over again!

I don't what it is about Doerr's books, but I would imagine this is the last I will read. And, like his last book, Cloud Cuckoo Land is well regarded and positively reviewed by many readers. In fact, as I checked out people's thoughts about the book after finishing, I was shocked that people enjoyed the novel as much as they did. It was as if they were reading a different novel. While I do appreciate the book slightly more after finishing, I really can't come around to saying I enjoyed it.

Quick premise - the book is about five main characters who live in three different timelines but all interconnected by a story more than two millennia old that reaches them in their different lives. While all distinct and unique people, there are commonalities between them (outsiders who are facing significant adversity and challenge) that make their connections noteworthy. While it's a cumbersome and confusing structure, ultimately, it didn't take away from the story. Rather, it did add depth to the novel and kept me interested in learning more about the varying storylines. 

So, why not a better rating? Well, at the end of most days reading, it just wasn't entertaining to me. The book was monotonous and the individual stories told were just not exciting. I kept waiting and hoping things would improve but it just never got traction for me,
and I found myself rarely being interested in what was going to next happen in the story. During the final few chapters and ending it did get slightly more interesting as it was the first time it was clear how the stories connected, and while it was the most interested I was during my entire read, I couldn't get over the previous hundreds of pages that were much less engaging.

Certainly I would not recommend this book to others but it feels like this author and I just don't get along. This novel, along with his first, are highly regarded by many, and like many things in life, people have different tastes. So, perhaps it is worth giving it a try, but just remember if you don't enjoy it, I tried to warn you :).