Alec’s Comments (group member since Oct 18, 2020)

Alec’s comments from the YHS Class of 2023 group.

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

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I rated Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand a 5/5. It is a World War II story of survival and the resilience of the human mind, body, and spirit. The story details Louis Zamperini’s life focusing on his experiences in World War II as a bombardier in the Army Air Corps and a POW in Japanese territories. In boyhood Louie had been a defiant delinquent stealing, brawling, and fleeing home to ride the rails. After being forced to join the highschool track team by his brother, he managed to channel his defiance into running. Louie eventually competed in the Olympics but instead of pursuing his career in running found himself fighting for America in World War II.
What I found myself liking most about the book is Laura Hillenbrand's ability to recount a large period of time while picking out every important detail and making that the focal point of her writing. I never felt bored reading this book as every moment relaid to the reader felt extremely important, most literally meaning life or death for the main character. Another aspect of Unbroken I felt was executed perfectly was the use of characters throughout the story. During Louie’s time spent as a castaway, he and his two other surviving crewmates spent 47 days adrift in the Pacific ocean. Over this period of time Laura Hillenbrand takes care to flush out each character’s thoughts thoroughly to the reader allowing the reader to relate and understand the people she is depicting on a much deeper level. This level of attachment to the characters cultivated by the author creates a sense of investment in their success from the readers making the story just that much more gripping. While the beginning of the story does feel a little slow it is necessary to create a strong foundation to build the masterpiece that this story is built upon.
Anybody who enjoys a good war story would find this book extremely worth the read. Those who have read any of Laura Hillenbrand’s other books such as Seabiscuit and enjoyed the writing style will also find that this book does not disappoint.



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The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I rated Catcher in the Rye a 4/5. It is a coming of age story detailing 16 year old Holden Caulfield's experiences over the course of just a few days after he was expelled from Pencey Preparatory school. While the time period covered by the story is very short it's jam packed with major narrative events and kept me involved in the unraveling story. The beginning of the book is easily the slowest part and only escalates from that point on. I personally liked the writing style J.D. Salinger used in this book and think it's a defining aspect of the story's narrative but could see others not feeling the same. The book does a great job of putting the reader in the mind of an unpredictable rebellious protagonist and allows the reader to experience character development alongside the main character. One thing I didn't love about the book was the ending. The ending is somewhat abrupt because of the large gap in time between the books climax and resolution and leaves the events in-between up to the reader to interpret themselves. Catcher in the Rye is a staple coming of age story and likely up your alley if you liked books such as TKAM.



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