Unbroken

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Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand has been on the NY Times Bestseller list for several weels. That's usually enough for me to take notice even if the topic isn't something I typically go after.

Good Reads' Synopsis: "On a May afternoon in 1943, an Army Air Forces bomber crashed into the Pacific Ocean and disappeared, leaving only a spray of debris and a slick of oil, gasoline, and blood.  Then, on the ocean surface, a face appeared.  It was that of a young lieutenant, the plane’s bombardier, who was struggling to a life raft and pulling himself aboard.  So began one of the most extraordinary odysseys of the Second World War.

The lieutenant’s name was Louis Zamperini.  In boyhood, he’d been a cunning and incorrigible delinquent, breaking into houses, brawling, and fleeing his home to ride the rails.  As a teenager, he had channeled his defiance into running, discovering a prodigious talent that had carried him to the Berlin Olympics and within sight of the four-minute mile.  But when war had come, the athlete had become an airman, embarking on a journey that led to his doomed flight, a tiny raft, and a drift into the unknown.

Ahead of Zamperini lay thousands of miles of open ocean, leaping sharks, a foundering raft, thirst and starvation, enemy aircraft, and, beyond, a trial even greater.  Driven to the limits of endurance, Zamperini would answer desperation with ingenuity; suffering with hope, resolve, and humor; brutality with rebellion.  His fate, whether triumph or tragedy, would be suspended on the fraying wire of his will.

In her long-awaited new book, Laura Hillenbrand writes with the same rich and vivid narrative voice she displayed in Seabiscuit.  Telling an unforgettable story of a man’s journey into extremity, Unbroken is a testament to the resilience of the human mind, body, and spirit."
What I Thought: Man, oh man! What a story! I did not expect to enjoy this nearly as much as I did. I found myself finishing it feverishly because the Kindle borrowing time was running out and I didn't want to wait for it again. I even shunned television for two nights in favor of reading. That says something! Zamperini's story is nothing short of amazing. History is not my thing but this one sucked me in big time. Hillenbrand does a superb job of conveying the POW's hardships and the terror of war. PLEASE READ THIS!

Rating: * * * *