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Any review of this book has to start by acknowledging how incredible and inspiring the account of Louie Zamperini is within “Unbroken.�� My grandfather was also a POW in World War II, captured at the Battle of the Bulge, so I was personally very grateful to Laura Hillenbrand for taking on the challenge of chronicling it, particularly when she had to overcome health struggles of her own to do so.

As many other reviews have covered, Louie’s story is unbelievable �� from Olympic athlete to Army bombardier to POW, and managing to survive in a tiny raft on the open sea for more than a month. Hillenbrand does her now-characteristic job of thorough research and adding details to weave the story together.

The reason this book fell a bit short for me, despite the fascinating events it describes, is a tone which, throughout, is best described as clinical. I’ve interviewed many World War II veterans and members of the Greatest Generation, and she accurately portrays the dispassionate way many of them speak about their service. It’s difficult, after more than 50 years of hindsight, to capture the raw feelings that his trials must have produced. But it does leave me, as a reader, wishing for more insight into Louie’s emotions and character. The facts give a compelling story, but the distance in the narrative made it difficult to connect with Louie as a character and kept the book from having a larger emotional impact.

All in all, I think this is a tremendously important book, and well deserving of all the success it has enjoyed. I’d certainly recommend it to anyone who is interested in this period of history. I’m grateful that it brings out another story of the Greatest Generation, and, specifically, of a POW �� of a survivor. I’m just left with a lingering feeling that it could have been more.

Jesse Cozean
Author, My Grandfather's War: A Young Man's Lessons from the Greatest Generation