Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption

This book, from the author of Sea Biscuit, is one of the best books I’ve ever read in the past five years. It is action-packed, fast-paced, fluid, like the Pacific Ocean in which much of the story is set, inspirational to the nth degree because it is all, every word of it, a true story. The author conducted endless interviews and rsearch on an American hero named Louis Zamperini, a small town boy born into a humble Italian family. Louis is cantankerous. He lies, thieves, drinks, smokes, get cut, out-runs trouble, and runs into trouble. He is, at once, an indefatigable and irrepressible force of human spirit that is unstoppable. After endless problem-causing and mischievousness—all self-induced in an amazing scope and sequence, I should add, Louie is drawn into the world of distance running by Pete, his respected and lauded older brother. Running does not come naturally to Louis, but he has been running from the police, his neighbors, and assorted local hoodlums for so long that a concentrated effort to train at running only becomes natural. Louis falters at first, but for the first time in his life, he receives accolades for winning a race here and there. As his times improve, so do his grades and self-esteem. Running, it seems, will help Louis find himself. He runs in college, sets and breaks records, and eventually represents the U. s. in the 1936 Olympics where he does well for a race wehre runners come into their own at 26-28 years of age, and Louis is only 22. He is literally on pace to be the first human to break the four minute mile. Fate or God has different plans for Louis, who ends up in the Army Air Forces after Pearl Harbor. He flies B-24’s, great, hulking plans with an affinity for crashing, which is exactly what happens to him. He, his pilot, and one other crew member float aboard survival rafts for 47 days. They live off the occasional gull they catch and eat raw, and the occasional raw fish. They are surrounded by sharks the entire time, some of which leap out of the water to try to engulf their heads in their savage, gaping mouths. The crew is captured, thousands of miles from their crash site, on a Japanese island. They begin a series of interments in Japanese Prisoner of War camps tha defy my ability to comprehend man’s seemingly endless affinity to degrade, abuse, and persecute fellow mankind. Starved, beaten, the Japanese soldiers have no respect for solders who are captured alive. In their Bushido mentality, death by suicide was the only honorable end after capture. So treating the Pow’s with kindness was a likely as German Nazis showing mercy to another group of subhuman undesirables: Jews. Louis, in sad chape from his 47 ordeal, is given his greatest challenge: survive a masochisgtic psychopath who receives sexual gratification from punishing the prisoners, a man man who foams at the mouth and turns purple as he screams, pummels the men with clubs and his belt buckle, then coos to them quietly and tells them he is sorry. He targets Louis, a man whose Olympic record make him the Number One Prisoner out of the 700 in camp. The man to be broken. Psycho Watanabe will beat him daily, and follow him through several camps. But even the Japanese are brought to their knees by the atomic bomb. Japan surrender and, miraculously, the prisoners avoid the standing order to kill them all. Louis begins a long period of convalescence, heals, and goes home to a family who had been told he was dead. Louis suffer PTSS, picks fights, and becomes an alcoholic. His life is headed into an addictive abyss from which few can return. But Louis is unbreakable: he meets his future wife and tried to turn things around, but cannot shake his haunting past. After a near divorce, his wife leads him to listen to evangelist Billy Graham. Louis leaves in a blind rage: God has deserted him, and he will hear none of His tripe. His wife begs him to return, and Louis remembers he promised God that is he would spare him on the ocean, “I will serve you forever.” Louis listens as

This book speaks of sucess, disaster, & return from the grave. Anyone that has ever served our country and has been tested can connect. PTSD does to Soldiers, Sailors, Airman, & Marines many different things and the Doctor's and Theorpist's claim of the "Unseen Wounds and Traumatic Brain Injury." do not cover the full aspect of what PTSD can do to Veteran's and their Families. The faith in Prayer and the gift of redemption sings to the soul foe me and reassures my belief in God.

I am an avid reader of American History. WWII accounts and WWII in general probably interest me the most because we can still talk to the very folks who lived through this critical moment in our nations history. This account of Louis Zamerini is right up there with Stephen Ambrose's "Band of Brothers". In fact, I sincerely hope there is an accurate movie or mini-series portrayal based off of this book. Mrs. HIllenbrand has done a fantastic job of research and her style of writing kept me drawn in the entire time.