excerpt from "all the light we cannot see" by anthony doerr

8/9/2019 Excerpt From "All The Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr.

1/13

Excerpted from ALL THE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE by Anthony Doerr . Copyright © !"# by Anthony Doerr$ Excerpted %ith permi&&ion byScribner' ( Di)i&ion of Simon * Sch+&ter' Inc$

Zero

7 August 1944

1


2/13

Leaflets

At dusk they pour from the sky. They blow across the ramparts, turn cartwheels over rooftops,

flutter nto the rav nes between houses. !nt re streets sw rl w th them, flash ng wh te aga nst the

cobbles. Urgent message to the inhabitants of this town, they say. Depart immediately to open

country.The t de cl mbs. The moon hangs small and yellow and g bbous. "n the rooftops of

beachfront hotels to the east, and n the gardens beh nd them, a half#do$en Amer can art llery

un ts drop ncend ary rounds nto the mouths of mortars.

2


3/13

%ombersThey cross the &hannel at m dn ght. There are twelve and they are named for songs'

Stardust and Stormy Weather and In the Mood and Pistol Pac!in" Mama. The sea gl des along far

below, spattered w th the countless chevrons of wh tecaps. (oon enough, the nav gators can

d scern the low moonl t lumps of slands ranged along the hor $on.)rance.*ntercoms crackle. +el berately, almost la$ ly, the bombers shed alt tude. Threads of red

l ght ascend from ant #a r emplacements up and down the coast. +ark, ru ned sh ps appear,

scuttled or destroyed, one w th ts bow shorn away, a second fl cker ng as t burns. "n an

outermost sland, pan cked sheep run $ g$agg ng between rocks. *ns de each a rplane, a

bombard er peers through an a m ng w ndow and counts to twenty. )our f ve s seven. To the

bombard ers, the walled c ty on ts gran te headland, draw ng ever closer, looks l ke an unholy

tooth, someth ng black and dangerous, a f nal abscess to be lanced away.

3


4/13

The - rl*n a corner of the c ty, ns de a tall, narrow house at umber 4 rue /auborel, on the s th and

h ghest floor, a s ghtless s teen#year#old named 0ar e#Laure Le%lanc kneels over a low table

covered ent rely w th a model. The model s a m n ature of the c ty she kneels w th n, and

conta ns scale repl cas of the hundreds of houses and shops and hotels w th n ts walls. There s

the cathedral w th ts perforated sp re, and the bulky old &h2teau de (a nt#0alo, and row after

row of seas de mans ons studded w th ch mneys. A slender wooden 3etty arcs out from a beach

called the lage du 05le6 a del cate, ret culated atr um vaults over the seafood market6 m nute

benches, the smallest no larger than apple seeds, dot the t ny publ c s uares.

0ar e#Laure runs her f ngert ps along the cent meter#w de parapet crown ng the ramparts,draw ng an uneven star shape around the ent re model. (he f nds the open ng atop the walls

where four ceremon al cannons po nt to sea. 8%ast on de la ollande,: she wh spers, and her

f ngers walk down a l ttle sta rcase. 8;ue des &ord ers. ;ue


5/13

on the cobbles. ot even gulls.


6/13

The %oy) ve streets to the north, a wh te#ha red e ghteen#year#old -erman pr vate named =erner fenn g

wakes to a fa nt staccato hum. L ttle more than a purr. )l es tapp ng at a far#off w ndowpane.=here s he> The sweet, sl ghtly chem cal scent of gun o l6 the raw wood of newly

constructed shell crates6 the mothballed odor of old bedspreads?he s n the hotel. "f course.

L h5tel des Abe lles, the otel of %ees.(t ll n ght. (t ll early.)rom the d rect on of the sea come wh stles and booms6 flak s go ng up.An ant #a r corporal hurr es down the corr dor, head ng for the sta rwell. 8-et to the

cellar,: he calls over h s shoulder, and =erner sw tches on h s f eld l ght, rolls h s blanket nto h s

duffel, and starts down the hall.

ot so long ago, the otel of %ees was a cheerful address, w th br ght blue shutters on tsfacade and oysters on ce n ts caf@ and %reton wa ters n bow t es pol sh ng glasses beh nd ts

bar. *t offered twenty#one guest rooms, command ng sea v ews, and a lobby f replace as b g as a

truck. ar s ans on weekend hol days would dr nk aper t fs here, and before them the occas onal

em ssary from the republ c?m n sters and v ce m n sters and abbots and adm rals?and n the

centur es before them, w ndburned corsa rs' k llers, plunderers, ra ders, seamen.%efore that, before t was ever a hotel at all, f ve full centur es ago, t was the home of a

wealthy pr vateer who gave up ra d ng sh ps to study bees n the pastures outs de (a nt#0alo,

scr bbl ng n notebooks and eat ng honey stra ght from combs. The crests above the door l ntels

st ll have bumblebees carved nto the oak6 the vy#covered founta n n the courtyard s shaped

l ke a h ve. =erner s favor tes are f ve faded frescoes on the ce l ngs of the grandest upper

rooms, where bees as b g as ch ldren float aga nst blue backdrops, b g la$y drones and workers

w th d aphanous w ngs?where, above a he agonal bathtub, a s ngle n ne#foot#long ueen, w th

mult ple eyes and a golden#furred abdomen, curls across the ce l ng."ver the past four weeks, the hotel has become someth ng else' a fortress. A detachment

of Austr an ant #a rmen has boarded up every w ndow, overturned every bed. They ve re nforced

6


7/13

the entrance, packed the sta rwells w th crates of art llery shells. The hotel s fourth floor, where

garden rooms w th )rench balcon es open d rectly onto the ramparts, has become home to an

ag ng h gh#veloc ty ant #a r gun called an that can f re twenty#one#and#a#half#pound shells

n ne m les. #er Ma$esty, the Austr ans call the r cannon, and for the past week these men have tended

to t the way worker bees m ght tend to a ueen. They ve fed her o ls, repa nted her barrels,

lubr cated her wheels6 they ve arranged sandbags at her feet l ke offer ngs.The royal acht acht, a deathly monarch meant to protect them all.=erner s n the sta rwell, halfway to the ground floor, when the f res tw ce n u ck

success on. *t s the f rst t me he s heard the gun at such close range, and t sounds as f the top

half of the hotel has torn off. e stumbles and throws h s arms over h s ears. The walls

reverberate all the way down nto the foundat on, then back up.=erner can hear the Austr ans two floors up scrambl ng, reload ng, and the reced ng

screams of both shells as they hurtle above the ocean, already two or three m les away. "ne of

the sold ers, he real $es, s s ng ng. "r maybe t s more than one. 0aybe they are all s ng ng.

! ght Luftwaffe men, none of whom w ll surv ve the hour, s ng ng a love song to the r ueen.=erner chases the beam of h s f eld l ght through the lobby. The b g gun detonates a th rd

t me, and glass shatters somewhere close by, and torrents of soot rattle down the ch mney, and

the walls of the hotel toll l ke a struck bell. =erner worr es that the sound w ll knock the teeth

from h s gums.e drags open the cellar door and pauses a moment, v s on sw mm ng. 8Th s s t>: he

asks. 8They re really com ng>:%ut who s there to answer>

7


8/13

(a nt#0aloBp and down the lanes, the last unevacuated townspeople wake, groan, s gh. (p nsters,

prost tutes, men over s ty. rocrast nators, collaborators, d sbel evers, drunks. uns of every

order. The poor. The stubborn. The bl nd.(ome hurry to bomb shelters. (ome tell themselves t s merely a dr ll. (ome l nger to

grab a blanket or a prayer book or a deck of play ng cards.+#day was two months ago. &herbourg has been l berated, &aen l berated, ;ennes too.

alf of western )rance s free. *n the east, the (ov ets have retaken 0 nsk6 the ol sh ome

Army s revolt ng n =arsaw6 a few newspapers have become bold enough to suggest that the

t de has turned.

%ut not here. ot th s last c tadel at the edge of the cont nent, th s f nal -ermanstrongpo nt on the %reton coast.

ere, people wh sper, the -ermans have renovated two k lometers of subterranean

corr dors under the med eval walls6 they have bu lt new defenses, new condu ts, new escape

routes, underground comple es of bew lder ng ntr cacy. %eneath the pen nsular fort of La & t@,

across the r ver from the old c ty, there are rooms of bandages, rooms of ammun t on, even an

underground hosp tal, or so t s bel eved. There s a r#cond t on ng, a two#hundred#thousand#l ter

water tank, a d rect l ne to %erl n. There are flame#throw ng booby traps, a net of p llbo es w th

per scop c s ghts6 they have stockp led enough ordnance to spray shells nto the sea all day, every

day, for a year.ere, they wh sper, are a thousand -ermans ready to d e. "r f ve thousand. 0aybe more.

(a nt#0alo' =ater surrounds the c ty on four s des. *ts l nk to the rest of )rance s

tenuous' a causeway, a br dge, a sp t of sand. =e are 0alou ns f rst, say the people of (a nt#

0alo. %retons ne t. )rench f there s anyth ng left over.*n stormy l ght, ts gran te glows blue. At the h ghest t des, the sea creeps nto basements

at the very center of town. At the lowest t des, the barnacled r bs of a thousand sh pwrecks st ck

out above the sea.)or three thousand years, th s l ttle promontory has known s eges.

8


9/13

%ut never l ke th s.A grandmother l fts a fussy toddler to her chest. A drunk, ur nat ng n an alley outs de

(a nt#(ervan, a m le away, plucks a sheet of paper from a hedge. Urgent message to the

inhabitants of this town, t says. Depart immediately to open country.Ant #a r batter es flash on the outer slands, and the b g -erman guns ns de the old c ty

send another round of shells howl ng over the sea, and three hundred and e ghty )renchmen

mpr soned on an sland fortress called at onal, a uarter m le off the beach, huddle n a moonl t

courtyard peer ng up.)our years of occupat on, and the roar of oncom ng bombers s the roar of what>

+el verance> ! t rpat on>

The clack#clack of small#arms f re. The gravelly snare drums of flak. A do$en p geonsroost ng on the cathedral sp re cataract down ts length and wheel out over the sea.

9


10/13

umber 4 rue /auborel0ar e#Laure Le%lanc stands alone n her bedroom smell ng a leaflet she cannot read. ( rens

wa l. (he closes the shutters and relatches the w ndow. !very second the a rplanes draw closer6

every second s a second lost. (he should be rush ng downsta rs. (he should be mak ng for the

corner of the k tchen where a l ttle trapdoor opens nto a cellar full of dust and mouse#chewed

rugs and anc ent trunks long unopened.*nstead she returns to the table at the foot of the bed and kneels bes de the model of the

c ty.Aga n her f ngers f nd the outer ramparts, the %ast on de la ollande, the l ttle sta rcase

lead ng down. *n th s w ndow, r ght here, n the real c ty, a woman beats her rugs every (unday.

)rom th s w ndow here, a boy once yelled, Watch where you"re going, are you blind%The w ndowpanes rattle n the r hous ngs. The ant #a r guns unleash another volley. The

earth rotates 3ust a b t farther.%eneath her f ngert ps, the m n ature rue d !str@es ntersects the m n ature rue /auborel.

er f ngers turn r ght6 they sk m doorways. "ne two three. )our. ow many t mes has she done

th s> umber 4' the tall, derel ct b rd s nest of a house owned by her great#uncle !t enne.

=here she has l ved for four years. =here she kneels on the s th floor alone, as a do$en

Amer can bombers roar toward her.(he presses nward on the t ny front door, and a h dden catch releases, and the l ttle house

l fts up and out of the model. *n her hands, t s about the s $e of one of her father s c garette

bo es. ow the bombers are so close that the floor starts to throb under her knees. "ut n the

hall, the crystal pendants of the chandel er suspended above the sta rwell ch me. 0ar e#Laure

tw sts the ch mney of the m n ature house n nety degrees. Then she sl des off three wooden

panels that make up ts roof, and turns t over.A stone drops nto her palm.*t s cold. The s $e of a p geon s egg. The shape of a teardrop.

10


11/13

0ar e#Laure clutches the t ny house n one hand and the stone n the other. The room

feels fl msy, tenuous. - ant f ngert ps seem about to punch through ts walls.8 apa>: she wh spers.

11


12/13

&ellar %eneath the lobby of the otel of %ees, a corsa r s cellar has been hacked out of the bedrock.

%eh nd crates and cab nets and pegboards of tools, the walls are bare gran te. Three mass ve

hand#hewn beams, hauled here from some anc ent %reton forest and craned nto place centur es

ago by teams of horses, hold up the ce l ng.A s ngle l ghtbulb casts everyth ng n a waver ng shadow.=erner fenn g s ts on a fold ng cha r n front of a workbench, checks h s battery level,

and puts on headphones. The rad o s a steelcased two#way transce ver w th a 1.C#meter band

antenna. *t enables h m to commun cate w th a match ng transce ver upsta rs, w th two other

ant #a r batter es ns de the walls of the c ty, and w th the underground garr son command across

the r ver mouth.The transce ver hums as t warms. A spotter reads coord nates nto the headp ece, and an

art lleryman repeats them back. =erner rubs h s eyes. %eh nd h m, conf scated treasures are

crammed to the ce l ng' rolled tapestr es, grandfather clocks, armo res, and g ant landscape

pa nt ngs cra$ed w th cracks. "n a shelf oppos te =erner s t e ght or n ne plaster heads, the

purpose of wh ch he cannot guess.The mass ve staff sergeant )rank /olkhe mer comes down the narrow wooden sta rs and

ducks h s head beneath the beams. e sm les gently at =erner and s ts n a tall#backed armcha r

upholstered n golden s lk w th h s r fle across h s huge th ghs, where t looks l ke l ttle more

than a baton.=erner says, 8*t s start ng>:/olkhe mer nods. e sw tches off h s f eld l ght and bl nks h s strangely del cate

eyelashes n the d mness.8 ow long w ll t last>:8 ot long. =e ll be safe down here.:The eng neer, %ernd, comes last. e s a l ttle man w th mousy ha r and m sal gned

pup ls. e closes the cellar door beh nd h m and bars t and s ts halfway down the wooden

sta rcase w th a damp look on h s face, fear or gr t, t s hard to say.= th the door shut, the sound of the s rens softens. Above them, the ce l ng bulb fl ckers.

12


13/13

=ater, th nks =erner. * forgot water.A second ant #a r battery f res from a d stant corner of the c ty, and then the upsta rs

goes aga n, stentor an, deadly, and =erner l stens to the shell scream nto the sky. &ascades of

dust h ss out of the ce l ng. Through h s headphones, =erner can hear the Austr ans upsta rs st ll

s ng ng.. . . auf d"Wulda, auf d"Wulda, da scheint d"Sunn a so gulda . . ./olkhe mer p cks sleep ly at a sta n on h s trousers. %ernd blows nto h s cupped hands.

The transce ver crackles w th w nd speeds, a r pressure, tra3ector es. =erner th nks of home' )rau

!lena bent over h s l ttle shoes, double#knott ng each lace. (tars wheel ng past a dormer w ndow.

s l ttle s ster,

excerpt from "all the light we cannot see" by anthony doerr

Documents