Say you are going about your busy day, and you start to think about the character in the book you are reading, and you wonder what’s going to happen next. When that happens to me I know that I have found a treasure in that book. The best thing an author can do is enchant the reader into caring about one of the characters. This is what happened to me while I was reading Unbroken, a World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption, by Laura Hillenbrand. I found that I instantly liked Louis Zamperini, the hero of this story. When I was not reading the book, I felt like I should be because I didn’t want to leave Louie stuck in an awful place. Even though the story was in my mind, I had to keep it moving so that I could find some peace for Louie.
When Louie was younger, he was a little trouble maker, but his brother helped him channel his energy into being a runner. Louie worked hard through high school and became a star athlete by breaking records when he ran the mile. Soon he was off to the 1936 Olympics. I believe that all the stamina that Louie developed as an athlete helped him continue on his journey to survive his trials during World War II and beyond.
I try not to read books that are about war because as Bird, Louie’s arch enemy said after the war was done, “War is a crime against humanity.” It was difficult to read how people treated others during the war. There are very graphic scenes in the book, but since I now had gotten to know Louie, I kept rooting for him and hoping that his situation would get better. I also got to see how compassionate people can be, how they can learn to forgive and move on with their lives.
As you can tell by the title of the book, Louie did not get broken. Louie found a way to save himself, and witnessing his strong spirit could strengthen anyone’s resolve. The life he led is truly inspirational. It’s no wonder this book has been on the New York Times Best Seller List for 114 weeks.
If you can, try to read the book before it becomes a movie. The movie is going to be produced this year. Louie, at 96, will hopefully be able to be a part of the production.
You can find details about the movie here: http://www.deadline.com/2012/12/angelina-jolie-director-unbroken-olympian-lou-zamerini-universal.
Now I look forward to see which will be better, the book or the movie?
My Reality Show 
With over 3,100 Five star reviews on Amazon, I’m impressed.Thanks for posting about this book.
I read this book for my Book Club that is meeting next week. I’m so glad this book was on our reading list.
I’ve noticed this book on the best seller lists but have yet to read it. Now having read your review, I’m definitely adding it to my to-read list. I love a book that I can’t put down and they’re not always easy to find. Sounds like you felt that way about Unbroken.
Yes I do! It took the author seven years to complete the book. Laura Hillenbrand is also the author of Seabiscuit, which is going to be on my reading list!
I loved that book, too. We bought it for Ron’s dad who was a radioman/gunner on the same type of plane and the same fighting arena. Ben loved it because of the running. One of my top 20 books of all time!
I thought a lot about my Dad while reading this book. I was so glad that Dad was in the Navy, and didn’t have to be flying around in one of those airplanes. Dad didn’t talk about the war much.
I am not familiar with this book, but will have to look for it. Seems I always love what I conjure in my imagination just a little more than the movie.