While our attention is drawn to the increasing body count in Afghanistan, it is quite unfortunate and frustrating that the death of some 700 WWII veterans daily doesn’t seem to stir us from our stupor. It is a good thing that Laura Hillenbrand was able to reach Louis Zamperini, already an octogenarian, to learn about what could be considered one of the most incredible war stories thus far.
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption chronicles the gory details of the war and the travails of American soldiers. In a time when our perception of Japanese is mostly associated with the Sony gadgets and Toyota cars, this book is definitely a must-read. This is yet another concrete proof of the valor and unwavering spirit of American soldiers.
Unbroken chronicles the sufferings and triumphs of Zamperini, a WWII Airman and POW. Hillenbrand is able to help us see and experience this 93-year-old American hero’s grit and courage from a fresh perspective. While we get to discover his string of accomplishments which include his conquest of the track during the Berlin Olympics, Unbroken is really about a story of a man whose unbridled spirit and dogged determination have pushed him to where no other man has ever been before and survive the brutality of Japanese POW camps.
Hillenbrand is the perfect bearer for this amazing and inspiring story of heroism. Beyond the troubles and struggles during the early stages of the book, where she resorted to all-out reverence to her subject, Hillenbrand was able to get her acts together and come up with an objective account of the travails of a WWII veteran, which could well be the embodiment of the darkest moments of those times. She comes out with an intelligent and objective treatise of her subject and topic and her writing style is engaging and matched with just the right amount of technical elements.
Article comments
1 - Holly Weiss
Thank you for your review. I doff my hat as well to Ms. Hilllenbrand for bringing this story to our attention. Although a difficult read, I felt she did an excellent job.
2 - Jeff
When will it be available on iBooks?
3 - George Ben
Hillenbrand is really most perfect character and best Hero of story, I read this book and like it very very much. I just purchases book after reading this post and now posting comment because I like book very much.