Books like All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

During World War II, a foster girl in Nazi Germany steals books to share with neighbors and a hidden Jewish man, proving literature’s power to nourish the soul amid darkness.

Three white women in 1962 Mississippi team up with their Black maids to write a forbidden book that challenges the town’s rigid social order.

John Steinbeck's sweeping family saga set in California's Salinas Valley, spanning generations of the Trask and Hamilton families as they confront the struggle between good and evil, with biblical echoes of Cain and Abel.

A novel about Emma Woodhouse, a young woman's struggles with matchmaking, misplaced pride, and the dangers of meddling in others' lives in 18th-century England.

Cora, a woman enslaved on a Georgia cotton plantation, partners with a new slave named Caesar to flee the South. Their daring escape follows a literal underground network of tunnels that mirrors the perilous journey of countless fugitive slaves toward freedom.

Americanah follows Ifemelu, a Nigerian student who moves to the United States for university, exploring her life and love across continents while reflecting on identity, immigration, and cultural belonging.

In 1935 England, a young woman’s allegation of a crime sets off a chain of events that devastates families, alters lives during the Second World War, and echoes into a later life of remorse and reflection.

Sisters Vianne and Isabelle are pulled into the turmoil of World War II, each forging a path of courage and resistance against the Nazi occupation of France.

A Jewish American teen travels to Ukraine with a tattered photograph, seeking the woman who saved his grandfather during the Holocaust, guided by a quirky translator, a blind veteran, and an oddly named guide dog.

A woman born on a snowy night in 1910 dies and is reborn repeatedly, each life giving her the chance to alter history as the world heads toward another global conflict.

In 1941 Lithuania, fifteen‑year‑old Lina and her family are deported by the Soviets to a Siberian labor camp; through art and resilience they endure brutal conditions and strive to survive the long journey ahead.

After the Civil War, a veteran newspaper‑reader, Captain Jefferson Kidd, journeys through Texas and agrees to escort an orphaned Kiowa girl, Johanna, to San Antonio—a perilous trek that tests their survival and trust.

A 1943 British fighter pilot crash-lands in Nazi‑occupied France and recounts her daring escape, espionage, and friendship to a young French woman while concealing her true mission.

The Signature of All Things traces a family from modest English beginnings to wealth in the South American quinine trade, through the life of brilliant botanist Alma Whittaker as she explores evolution, love, and the clash of science and art across the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

Emma Donoghue’s debut novel follows a French burlesque dancer who, after a murder in 1876 San Francisco, seeks justice for her friend amid heat, smallpox and fierce class tensions.

When a ten‑year‑old Sarah is seized in the 1942 Vel' d'Hiv’ roundup, her friend Julia, a journalist two decades later, discovers that the past still haunts their families and forces her to confront her own identity in post‑war France.

Mario Puzo traces the rise of the Borgia family, revealing the intertwined forces of ambition, faith, and power that shaped one of Italy’s most notorious dynasties.

During the Great Depression and WWII, young Anna Kerrigan becomes Brooklyn’s first female naval diver, supporting her family while uncovering the mystery of her vanished father and the enigmatic Dexter Styles.

In occupied Paris, architect Lucien Bernard designs covert shelters for Jews, risking death to protect them during World War II.

"A unique and moving real-life story of the extraordinary bond between a young teacher and a penguin, this book will delight readers who loved Marley & Me, Dewey the Library Cat, The Good Good Pig, and any book by Jon Katz. In 1975, twenty-three-year-old Englishman Tom Michell follows his wanderlust to Argentina, where he becomes assistant master at a prestigious boarding school. But Michell's adventures really begin when, on a weekend in Uruguay, he rescues a penguin covered in oil from an ocean spill, cleans the bird up, and attempts to return him to the sea. But the penguin refuses to leave his rescuer's side. "That was the moment at which he became my penguin, and whatever the future held, we'd face it together," says Michell in this charming memoir. Michell names the penguin Juan Salvador ("John Saved"), but Juan Salvador, as it turns out, is the one who saves Michell. After Michell smuggles the bird back to Argentina and into his campus apartment, word spreads about the young Englishman's unusual roommate. Juan Salvador is suddenly the center of attention--as mascot of the rugby team, confidant to the dorm housekeeper, co-host of Michell's parties, and an unprecedented swimming coach to a shy boy. Even through the collapse of the Peronist government and amid the country's economic and political strife, Juan Salvador brings joy to everyone around him--especially Michell, who considers the affectionate animal a compadre and kindred spirit. Witty and heartwarming, The Penguin Lessons is a classic in the making, a story that is both absurd and wonderful, exactly like Juan Salvador"-- "Whether as rugby team mascot or assistant swimming coach, the penguin known as Juan Salvador touches and transforms everyone he encounters, including Tom Michell, the young teacher who finds him and rescues him from an oil spill disaster. After a time, Juan Salvador (meaning "the saved one") receives a new name: Juan Salvado, or "the savior." Set against the turbulent world of political unrest of 1970s Argentina, this multi-layered true story is a testament and tribute to animals and will no doubt resonate with the people who love them"--

After five years in Canada, 10‑year‑old Gavin and his 15‑year‑old sister Norah must return to war‑torn England in 1945, confronting homesickness, fear, and the emotional challenges of reuniting with family.

In 1938, Senator’s daughter Layla Beck is forced to leave her affluent life and work on the Federal Writers' Project, where she uncovers hidden family secrets and the true history of the West Virginia town of Macedonia.