Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr

 

Cloud Cuckoo Land is an achingly beautiful story of characters across vast periods of time, from the fall of Constantinople to a future where Earth has been devastated by climate change, who are united in their love of a simple, whimsical tale from ancient Greece. Anna finds an ancient book in an abandoned monastery, and uses her rudimentary Greek to share the story with her sister. Zeno learns that the book, now reduced to 24 crumbling leaves, has been recently rediscovered; he sets out to translate the story and share it with the bored fifth graders stuck in the public library after school. Konstance, in isolation on a space ship, scribbles the fragments of the story her father used to tell her on scraps of sacks.

 

The parallels between the three stories are undeniable. Constantinople, the library, and the Argos are all under siege, and in each setting there is a sense that the world as the characters know it is ending. The future is terrifying in one way or another, but the ancient story, whether in told through a damaged book, translated and out-of-order leaves, or fragments of memory, comforts and guides the characters.

 

The tale in question is a farcical tale about Aethon, a shepherd who wants to be turned into a bird so he can fly to Cloud Cuckoo Land, a paradise in the sky where there is no want or suffering. A series of mishaps sees him turned into a donkey, a sea bass, and finally a crow; but although he finally arrives in paradise, he finds himself longing for the simple pleasures of his old life. We (nor most of the characters) never learn how the story ends, but it becomes apparent in the way the story affects each of them to stop fearing the future and instead choose the flawed world around them rather than a paradise -- promised riches, a far away city, Bishop's camp, Beta Oph2 -- that may not even exist. 

 

This is an important lesson for us; we cannot avoid the growing consequences of climate change by ignoring the problem entirely or pretending we can find another place to live. But we also cannot allow the situation to sink us into despair and hopelessness, or worse yet cause us to resort to violence. Nor does this lesson just apply to the environment. For Zeno, the battle is far more abstract; he is mired in a life of regret and missed opportunities, and must learn to finally act. 

 

I could talk about this book for ages, but I don't want to spoil it anymore than I have. Read it! It is a glorious paean to stories, libraries, and above all, hope.