'Unbroken' by Laura Hillenbrand

Unbroken, by Laura Hillenbrand (4.5)

‘Unbroken’ not only got a unanimous thumbs-up from our little book club, but it also inspired one of our longest and pithiest conversations that included a personal story of an uncle who was also a POW in Japan (thanks to Diane for sharing her touching story). Laura Hillenbrand once again brings a true story alive with her telling of the life of Louie Zamperini, an Olympic runner who becomes a POW in Japan during WWII. While living a harrowing life, Louie manages to exude optimism and a joie de vive through all the worst times. Ms. Hillenbrand shows conclusively that Louie’s unbelievable survival is largely due to his unique attitude and tenacity. His story starts as a child in Torrance, it then takes us through his unlikely Olympic career, and his WWII experiences, including being stranded at sea and surviving multiple Japanese POW camps. Knowing he survives (and is still alive today) from the beginning of the book makes reading the difficult scenes slightly easier, though page after page you cannot believe he will actually survive! We all agreed that Louie’s story brought to life elements of the war that we were aware of, but were still shocking. The two biggest were the poor conditions of the planes and subsequent accidental deaths, and the brutal treatment of the POWs from their captors. A great story of survival and triumph as told by a riveting storyteller has earned this book a 4.5.