Louis Zamperini was a trouble maker growing up, luckily for him, he had another skill. Running. Louis was fast and soon learned that he could outrun pretty much everyone he encountered. This later lead him to his destiny of running in the Olympics. Unfortunately, his destiny had other things in mind as well. You see this was during World War 2 which meant a draft was inevitable and Louis would join others in our battle with Japan. What he didn't know and couldn't possibly imagine was just how much he would endure and what costs it would have on the rest of his life.
Louis' horrific tale begins when his B 24 takes off heading for Japan over the Pacific Ocean. Not too soon after is it knocked down by a fighter plane leaving Louis and his team fighting for their lives in shark infested waters. I mean literally shark, infested waters. These guys are hungry and pretty much stalk these men for weeks. Time continues to pass and it seems as if there is no way for anyone flying over to see them on their flimsy raft. The only thing keeping them going is their imagination and heart. Finally rescue is insight, but unfortunately it isn't the rescue they are hoping for. They do escape the isolation of being stranded in fierce, oceanic waters, but are now POW for the Japanese.
There are a litany of events that occur at which I will not disclose as I want you to read and get a firsthand experience of what Louis went through. He was beaten, starved, and downgraded to nothing and just when he thought he might get some relief at a different POW camp, he meets his match. They called him The Bird. The Bird was a self absorbed lunatic who gained pleasure in the destruction of others and for whatever reason, he chose Louis as his prime target. Maybe it was the fact that Louis refused to let him take him down. Don't get me wrong, he did beat him to a bloody pulp, help him back to his feet and do it all over again, but Louis did get up every time. Which would cause him to experience defeat in ways no human being should ever have to go through.
Louis did eventually get out. WW 2 ended and the United States was able to retrieve Louis and others in similar situations. Louis found love and married later, but had no idea the mental issues he was about to endure. You see The Bird may have been out of sight, but he was still very real to Louis. Louis saw him in his dreams as well as his drunken stupor during the day. Louis was loosing control and falling fast. Lucky for him, he made a promise to God back on the raft so many years before that he would serve God if he helped him survive. It was this promise that came back to him when he was at the lowest point of his life and it did indeed save him.
There is so much to this book that I left out because I didn't want to takea away the realness of it all. At first the language and vocabulary gave me a hard time really getting into it, but once I understood it, nothing could stop me from reading it. Louis Zamperini experienced such awfulness and yet he still came out on top. I also must say the author did a fantastic job of including details from this time that give the reader a real image of what such events must have been like. One example is the details included when the U.S. dropped the atomic bombs, no history book can create for me the picture in my mind as I read word for word, Louis' account. For more details and a truly deep, true story regarding survival of the mind, body, and sprit, I encourage you to read this book.
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