Unbroken
The life of Louis Zamperini — Olympic runner, bomber crew, castaway, and Japanese POW.
The Verdict
One of the most gripping true stories the war produced, told by a master of narrative nonfiction. Louis Zamperini — Olympic runner, bombardier, castaway adrift for 47 days, then prisoner of a brutal Japanese camp — lived a story almost too extreme to believe, and Laura Hillenbrand renders it with the propulsive control that made Seabiscuit a phenomenon. A survival epic, a POW account, and a study of resilience and forgiveness, it has earned its enormous readership.
Who Should Read It
Read it if you want
- An unforgettable true survival story
- Readers who love narrative nonfiction
- The POW experience in the Pacific
- An accessible, page-turning entry to the war
Look elsewhere if you want
- Strategy or the wider course of the war
- A measured, scholarly pace
- Readers wanting combat over personal ordeal
Why We Rated It 4.7
Historical Context
Louis Zamperini was a 1936 Olympic distance runner who became a B-24 bombardier. Shot down in the Pacific in 1943, he survived 47 days adrift before being captured and held in Japanese POW camps until 1945. Hillenbrand's 2010 book was a multi-year bestseller and was adapted into a 2014 film.
Events Covered
Editions & Reading Notes
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Where to Buy
ISBN: 978-0812974492
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Frequently Asked Questions
- Is Unbroken a true story?
- Yes — it is the biography of Louis Zamperini, Olympic runner, airman, castaway, and POW, based on extensive research and interviews.
- Is it about combat?
- Partly, but its heart is survival — Zamperini's weeks adrift at sea and his ordeal as a prisoner of war.