One of the best books I have ever read. It will make you feel patriotic this 4th of July week and incredibly amazed and grateful to the soldiers who have literally given everything for the freedoms we enjoy today.
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.
In her long-awaited new book, Laura Hillenbrand writes with the same rich and vivid narrative voice she displayed in Seabiscuit. Telling an unforgettable story of a man’s journey into extremity, Unbroken is a testament to the resilience of the human mind, body, and spirit.
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Frequently Asked Questions: Unbroken
Is Unbroken a good audiobook?
It is excellent in audio, and I can vouch for it in a similar format — I read it aloud to my husband across a thirty-five hour drive and we looked forward to it every day. The narrative is structured in distinct segments, each strong enough to stand alone, which suits listening in stretches rather than one sitting.
Is Unbroken too graphic?
It is a true account of a prisoner of war, so there is real brutality in it and Hillenbrand does not skip past it. What keeps it bearable is that the book is fundamentally about endurance and hope rather than about suffering. Most adult readers handle it well, but it is not a gentle read and I would not hand it to a young teen without knowing them.
Is Unbroken a good gift?
One of my favourites to give, particularly to a dad who loves books and war stories. It is a rare non-fiction title that reads like a novel, so it works for people who say they do not enjoy history. It also suits men and women equally, which is not true of every book I recommend.
Should I read it if I have seen the film?
Yes. The book covers far more of Zamperini’s life than a film has room for — his childhood, his running career and the Berlin Olympics, and everything that came after the war. I loved him from the moment he appeared as a two-year-old, and that whole arc is where the book’s power sits.
