Unbroken

Every summer I try to read one adult book along side all of the young adult/teen fiction I try to catch up on.  Last summer, I read Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett.  This summer, my dad and best friend's wife recommended I read Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand.  This World War II story of survival, resilience, and redemption is amazing.  Louie Zamperini grew up in Torrance, CA and is quite a handful growing up.  Guided by his older brother, he turns to running to turn his life around.  He trains and competes in the 1936 Berlin Olympics and even crosses paths with Hitler.  Crazy, right!  He joins the army air corps and prepares for battle.  While on a search mission over the Pacific, his bomber goes down and he and 2 members of the crew begin a gripping survival story that takes you in to the heart of POW camps in Japan. 

I was glued to this story and think there are many teachable moments.  I think this book should be read in all high school classrooms.  It would be a great companion piece to Night by Elie Wiesel as it tells a side of WWII that we don't hear too much about - what happened to those captured by Japanese.  I highly recommend this book!