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

5/5 Stars

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand is the true and remarkable account of Army Air Force Lieutenant Lois Zamperini, and it is more than just a book.  It is a narrative overflowing with history, suffering, heartbreak, unwavering resolve and determination, strength and dignity, forgiveness and redemption, and inspiration and hope. It is a story that should never be forgotten and one that, despite its dark and difficult accounts, brings great hope and resilience, which rise like a phoenix out of the ashes of utter despair. It is unforgettable, astounding and, I would even argue, quite miraculous.

This extraordinary book tells the story of Louis Zamperini, an Olympic runner, thought to be good enough to be the first person to break the four-minute mile, turned World War II bombardier.  It begins with his troublemaking youth and some entertaining stories from that time to his transformation into a world-class runner. Then, like so many, Louis is swept up into service during World War II at which time he becomes a bombardier.  While on a mission, the plane Zamperini is on crashes, yet he miraculously survives.  His survival at sea is a testament to his unwavering determination amid intense adversity (starvation, dehydration, bleating sun, shark attacks).  It is a true show of the power of the human will.  Hillenbrand has a way of drawing the reader to the raft with Zamperini, and the reader becomes immersed in the emotion of the moments.

After weeks at sea, Zamperini is captured by the Japanese and becomes a prisoner of war thus beginning the next heart-wrenching leg of his unfathomable journey.  He faces years of physical, psychological, and emotional abuse at the hands of his cruel and sadistic captors.  Hillenbrand researched the details of Zamperini’s story exceptionally well and told of his ordeal with brutal honesty and raw emotion.  Zamperini found himself in circumstances to which his survival can only be described as miraculous and where his strength and resolve was unwavering.  At the hands of abuse from one unspeakably cruel and torturous captor, Louis thinks, “He cannot break me.”  And, at the culmination of this book, the reader in fact does see that Louis remains unbroken.

Upon the ending of the war and the rescue of Louis Zamperini and the other prisoners of war, Louis assimilates with great difficulty back into “normal life” in America.  He marries, becomes a father, finds works where he can.  But he clearly carries the scars of war and exhibits the tell-tale signs of post-traumatic stress disorder.  One day he has an encounter with Jesus Christ, in which he finds great healing, greater hope, and a release of resentment toward his captors and abusers which ultimately equips him with the ability to forgive and find peace and healing in the process.

Unbroken is inspirational.  Hillenbrand did a phenomenal job researching this even more phenomenal story.  It is a well-written and captivating story. 

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