Review: Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand

Title:  Unbroken
Author: Laura Hillenbrand
Publisher: Random House
Publishing Date: November 16, 2010
Length: 473 pages
Summary: (From Barnes & Noble.com) 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.

My Thoughts:  This. Book. Wow.  I couldn't put it down. I feel like Louis Zamperini is a close friend of mine. I cried, laughed and was left with a strong feeling of patriotism. I am so proud to be American. I wish the school system would change their education style to include more books like this. This book made history come alive. I will never forget it.
Things To Be Careful Of: This book does not take the war lightly and speaks openly about what happened in POW camps and air raids. Including torture, beating and starvation.