The book I chose was one that was mentioned in the Wisconsin State Journal one day. I saw a review about it and was really drawn to it. It is about a man name Louie Zamperini. Louie is a former Olympian and solder in World War II. Ironically, when I finished the book Louie passed away and now his story is being made into a movie by Angelina Jolie. I thought that this book would seem like homework but surprisingly it didn't! Once I started I could not put it down. And since then I have re-read it for fun. I am in no way fit to give a good representation of the book, but I will try my best!
The story of Louie Zamperini starts off in his troubled youth. Louie didn't have a place to fit in and instead of making friends turned to bullying. He picked up athletics to help get rid of his anger, but only got kicked out of any athletic team. That's where is older brother stepped in and begged their principal to let him join the track team. That's where Louie found himself. He was a beast in high school track and smashed any record he put his mind to. He got a full ride to USC for track and continued his track reputation from there. He was driven to go to the Olympics someday and that's exactly where he went.
After the Olympics he signed up to be a pilot after the attack on Pearl Harbor. He became a bombardier on fighter planes. During one horrific mission his plane went down in a fatal crash. Him and two of his friends were the only ones who survived. They survived on two rafts for almost 50 days on nothing but rain water and bird meat when they were fortunate to catch one. As they neared their 50 day they drifted towards some islands they didn't recognize. Within hours they were picked up by a Japanese boat. As the war raged on he and his friends were bounced back and forth between Prisoner of War camps. It was terrible reading all the accounts of which Louis was beaten for no reason, but inspiring to hear how he never lost hope.
There is much, much more to the story of Louie Zamperini! And I highly suggest it to anyone who has the time to read a good book. There are many twist and turns and it's hard to believe how much he went through! RIP Louie
Wow! Louie Zamperini sounds like an amazing person! I get where you are coming from with the non-fiction book. I was hesitant to read mine too but after I started it, I couldn't put it down either. It's almost like the fact that it is one hundred percent a true story makes it that much more powerful because you know that its not made up.
ReplyDeleteIts really cool that they are making a movie about it too now! You will have to make sure you go see it. Hope your having a great summer!
Hi Maria! I totally agree that this is a book you can't put down. I read this book for an AP United States History project and I thought it was a great book. It was sad to learn when Louis Zamperini died in July. It's great their making a movie out of this book. The pictures in the book were amazing to see, especially because they were real since this actually happened. This was truly a heartfelt and amazing book.
ReplyDelete