{Open Book: my thoughts on recent reads}
Both my parents are avid readers. When it comes time to give them a gift - a book is always at the top of the list. Along with anything for the garden, anything to do with sailing or the beach, or anything to do with cooking or the kitchen. (Proof that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree!) SO...I originally bought Unbroken for my Dad for Father's Day.
I had gone to buy my book club pick and serendipitously came upon Unbroken at the bookstore. Normally, I read my books on my iPad, but it was coming up on Summer...and I wanted a real book. One I could read by the pool, by the slip n' slide, at the beach without worrying. As I walked the aisles, I had in the back of my mind, that I wanted something more than grand-kid art and black licorice for my Dad's gift. (My dad lives for black licorice. It makes me want to die.) When I saw Unbroken, I knew I had found a good fit for my Dad - the Veteran, the reader, the most faithful man I know. Bonus it was written by a great story teller. Other than those first few selling points, I didn't give the book much thought.
Then 2 months later, Unbroken was chosen by my book club for August. I asked my Dad for the book back. He gladly brought it to me. And a week later, sent me a sweet card in the mail with a "treasure hunt" of his favorite quotes and points in the book. It made me all that much more excited to open the pages.
I didn't really know what to expect. Other than 400+ pages of World War II. But what I discovered was so much more than war. Unbroken is about war. But at its core, Unbroken is really about the human spirit. There were times in the book I wasn't sure if the story being told was embellished. But after I finished it, those times seemed to matter less. The truth is, a man (two men) survived at sea for an unimaginable amount of time. A man was "rescued" only to endure another 2 years of unimaginable circumstances under enemy control. That same man, eventually made it home. And it was really hard to be home. A place he had been longing for, for so long...and yet a place that felt anything but safe. That man decided not to let the past decide his future. That man found faith, and grace, and unconditional love. That man decided to live and give what he had found, BACK. Even to those who had tried to break him. That is what Unbroken is about. After I gave up my second guessing, I loved every single page. Highly recommended!
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