Laura Hillenbrand's "Unbroken"...

I'm going to break from my normal form for this book, because it would be demeaing. There is no "good, bad, or ugly", there is only greatness. Very seldom, all of the factors come together: a fantastic story, constructed by a magnificent story-teller, and read by an incomparible narrator. When this happens, greatness occurs. That's what happened with Laura Hillebrand's "Unbroken". I will discuss the three factors:

1. The story: If the story weren't true, it would be far too fantastical and horrific to believe. How Americans, myself included, aren't keenly aware of the story of Louis Zamperini. It doesn't take from the greatness of Zamperini, it merely infers that the number of fantastical heroes from WWII is beyond the comprehension of the average 21st Century American. It seems that many characters from this story (Alan Phillips, Bill Harris, etc.) could have been the protagonist - and that, in itself, speaks volumes. It is a suspenseful, sad, glorious, and fulfilling story - and everyone should treat themselves to it.

2. The story-teller: Laura Hillenbrand is well-known for having penned another non-fiction novel, "Seabiscuit", which was made into a film and nominated for 7 Academy Awards. To be fair, I haven't read "Seabiscuit", but I know the story. And if you could write a story that generated 7 Oscare nominations for the story of "Seabiscuit", well, you could certainly give them all to The Louis Zamperini story. Not only is the story, which spans almost 11 decades, fresh and relevant, it is an "off-the-edge-of-your-seat" thriller. All I know is, I will read everything that she writes from here on out.

3. The narrator: This is only important for us audiophiles, but few book experiences can equal those read by Edward Herrmann. He has done so much work as an actor, it would be hard to narrow down his most notable roles, but for me he is "Max" from "The Lost Boys", and he is fantastic. Anything that he reads, I want to be there.

I could read 500 books this year, none would live up to the greatness of Laura Hillenbrand's "The Unbroken".