The Most Influential Book I Have Read by Elizabeth

The Most Influential Book I Have Read by Elizabeth - October 2023 Scholarship Essay

Books are something that can spark your imagination no matter age, ethnicity, or belief. Reading benefits the brain in more ways than one, it also improves vocabulary and english skills and enhances overall brain function as someone ages. However, there's always some book that has a great impact on every reader, whether it be a biography, fictional, or some other genre. My essay will be about the book All The Light We Cannot See and why the storyline was so influential and motivational.
The book All The Light We Cannot See takes place in the years leading up to and during WWII, and focuses around a couple different characters. The two main characters is a blind girl from Paris and an orphan boy living in Germany. The story follows those two characters and how their lives are impacted by the different perspectives of the war. Although the book is fictional, it contains some historically accurate battles, like the Battle of Saint Malo.
Starting off, the book shows determination in a very good way. When the girl starts to become blind, she feels hopeless as she struggles to get around the places that were supposed to feel so familiar to her. As she is on the brink of giving up, she finds the motivation to keep trying because of her father. With the help of her dad, the girl eventually adjusts to her new world. This show of determination despite the negative life occurrence is influential to any reader and may even give them the determination to complete any tasks that they have been putting off themselves.
Another way the book is influential is because of the appreciation of the small things in life. When the girl becomes blind, she uses her other senses to take in information from her senses. She talks about the rolling waves of the ocean, the light summer breeze, and the smell of the bakery drifting through the streets. I feel as though we take the small things like the examples I gave for granted, we go about our lives not thinking about the changing seasons or the small day-to-day things. The story motivated me to take in more of my surroundings and have a more upbeat outlook on life
The final way the book motivated me was to always do the right thing. When the German boy had to eventually join the war to represent his country, he had the vague feeling that what he was doing wasn't right. He struggled with his choices until the end of the book when he finally decided to risk his life to do what he knew was the correct decision. It was a very heroic act of selflessness and generosity, and it's a good thing to apply the same kindness to everyday life. The prioritization of doing what is right is an amazing example of humanism at its core.
Overall, All The Light We Cannot See is the most influential book I've ever read because of it's illustration of determination, the ability to enjoy the small things in life, and the standard to do the right thing. The story takes the readers on an emotional roller coaster and I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a good novel to read.