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

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - The incredible true story of survival and salvation that is the basis for two major motion pictures: 2014's Unbroken and the upcoming Unbroken: Path to Redemption.

On a May afternoon in 1943, an Army Air Forces bomber crashed into the Pacific Ocean and disappeared, leaving only a spray of debris and a slick of oil, gasoline, and blood. Then, on the ocean surface, a face appeared. It was that of a young lieutenant, the plane's bombardier, who was struggling to a life raft and pulling himself aboard. So began one of the most extraordinary odysseys of the Second World War.

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.

Praise for Unbroken

"Extraordinarily moving . . . a powerfully drawn survival epic."--The Wall Street Journal

" A] one-in-a-billion story . . . designed to wrench from self-respecting critics all the blurby adjectives we normally try to avoid: It is amazing, unforgettable, gripping, harrowing, chilling, and inspiring."--New York

"Staggering . . . mesmerizing . . . Hillenbrand's writing is so ferociously cinematic, the events she describes so incredible, you don't dare take your eyes off the page."--People

"A meticulous, soaring and beautifully written account of an extraordinary life."--The Washington Post

"Ambitious and powerful . . . a startling narrative and an inspirational book."--The New York Times Book Review

"Marvelous . . . Unbroken is wonderful twice over, for the tale it tells and for the way it's told. . . . It manages maximum velocity with no loss of subtlety."--Newsweek

"Moving and, yes, inspirational . . . Laura] Hillenbrand's unforgettable book . . . deserve s] pride of place alongside the best works of literature that chart the complications and the hard-won triumphs of so-called ordinary Americans and their extraordinary time."--Maureen Corrigan, Fresh Air

"Hillenbrand . . . tells this] story with cool elegance but at a thrilling sprinter's pace."--Time

"Unbroken is too much book to hope for: a hellride of a story in the grip of the one writer who can handle it."--Christopher McDougall, author of Born to Run

Author: Laura Hillenbrand
Publisher: Random House
Published: 11/16/2010
Pages: 496
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.80lbs
Size: 9.40h x 6.20w x 1.40d
ISBN: 9781400064168

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 7.7
Point Value: 24
Interest Level: Upper Grade
Quiz #/Name: 144668 / Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption

Award: Pennsylvania Young Reader's Choice Award - Nominee
Award: ALA Notable Books - Winner
Award: Christopher Awards - Winner
Award: Grand Canyon Reader Award - Recommended
Award: Colorado Blue Spruce Award - Nominee
Award: L.A. Times Book Prize - Winner
Award: Indies Choice Book Awards - Winner

Review Citation(s):
Entertainment Weekly 07/29/2011 pg. 19
Entertainment Weekly 03/11/2011 pg. 81
Library Journal Prepub Alert 07/01/2010 pg. 57
Kirkus Reviews 09/01/2010
Library Journal 10/01/2010 pg. 84
Publishers Weekly 10/11/2010 pg. 34
Booklist 11/01/2010 pg. 14
People Weekly 11/22/2010 pg. 45
Entertainment Weekly 11/19/2010 pg. 101
Newsweek 11/22/2010 pg. 51
Entertainment Weekly 12/03/2010 pg. 83
New York Times Book Review 11/21/2010 pg. 20
New York Times Book Review 11/28/2010 pg. 26
Christian Century 01/11/2011 pg. 42
Publishers Weekly Best Books 11/08/2010 pg. 22
People Weekly 10/21/2013 pg. 42
Entertainment Weekly 11/08/2013 pg. 12
BookPage 11/01/2010

About the Author
Laura Hillenbrand is the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Seabiscuit: An American Legend, which was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award, won the Book Sense Book of the Year Award and the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award, landed on more than fifteen best-of-the-year lists, and inspired the film Seabiscuit, which was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Hillenbrand's New Yorker article, "A Sudden Illness," won the 2004 National Magazine Award, and she is a two-time winner of the Eclipse Award, the highest journalistic honor in Thoroughbred racing. She and actor Gary Sinise are the co-founders of Operation International Children, a charity that provides school supplies to children through American troops. She lives in Washington, D.C.