This interview was originally broadcast in May, 2014.
The author of two short story collections, a memoir, and now two novels, Anthony Doerr’s fiction has won a raft of awards. He is the recipient of four O. Henry Prizes, three Pushcart Prizes, the Rome Prize, a Guggenheim fellowship, the National Magazine award and the Sunday Times EFG Short Story Award, the largest prize in the world for a single short story.
Doerr's latest novel, "All the Light We Cannot See," was recently a finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction.
Ten years in the writing, the novel is set during World War II and tells the stories of a blind French girl and a German boy and how their lives eventually intertwine. It also is a story about the magic of radio, the power of love, a mythical diamond known as “The Sea of Flames,” and the humanity and courage of ordinary people caught up in the most horrific of circumstances.
Doerr’s other books include "The Shell Collector," "About Grace," "Four Seasons in Rome," and "Memory Wall." He has taught in Boise State’s MFA Program in Creative Writing, and was Idaho’s writer in residence from 2007 to 2010.
Copyright 2014 Boise State Public Radio