Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand

RECOMMENDED READING:

UNBROKEN BY LAURA HILLENBRAND

I just finished reading, quite possibly, the best biography I have ever encountered. It is the true story of Californian Louis Zamperini, who was a champion in the 1936 Berlin Olympics one-mile run. He went on to join the United States Army Air Corps in World War II as a bombardier. His plane went down over the Pacific and he survived 47 days afloat a life raft before being taken prisoner by the Japanese. He spent years being tortured as a Japanese Prisoner of War before Japan surrendered to the Allied Forces in 1945.

The story is extremely timely, as Louis suffered from what we now call Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). After his release from prisoner-of-war camps, he suffered terrible nightmares and daytime flashbacks. He turned to alcohol for relief from the pain, but the alcohol began to destroy the relationships that meant the most to Louie.

The Billy Graham Evangelistic Crusade in Los Angeles in the late 1940s was a turning point in the rich, full life of this incredible man, who went on to establish an outdoor camp for troubled youth in the San Gabriel Mountains of Southern California.

Although I read the book on my Kindle, I ordered a hardcover copy of this book, as well as Seabiscuit, by the same author, to keep on my shelf at home so it is available to all who enter my home. It is that good!

And, for those who want to watch the story on the big screen, stay tuned...it opens on Christmas Day, 2014, in movie theaters! It is directed by Angelina Jolie and the screenplay is written, in part, by two of my favorite writers, Joel and Ethan Coen. 

Anyone up for sharing a bucket of buttered popcorn on Christmas Day, join my family at the movies! We'll be there!

--Posted by Mama O.