Unbroken

Louis Zamperini died on July 2, 2014 at the age of 97. If you don't know who he is you should. If you haven't read Laura Hillenbrand's book about Louis, you should. Olympic athlete, World War II officer, plane crash survivor, prisoner of war, Christian, motivational speaker, the list just goes on and on. The movie rights to his life story have been floating around for over 50 years. No one was willing to make the movie because the story was too big. It seemed like it couldn't be condensed into a two hour movie. Later this year the movie, directed by Angelina Jolie will be released. Read the book and see the movie. The book by Laura  Hillenbrand is titled: Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience and Redemption. It was a number one New York Times bestseller and named by Time as the top nonfiction book of 2010.

This was Laura Hillenbrand's reaction to Louis Zamperini's death.

"It is with tears and the heaviest heart that I share the news of the passing of Louie Zamperini. He died peacefully in his sleep last night, surrounded by his loved ones. He lived ninety-seven beautiful extraordinary years.
Louie was my beloved friend, my surrogate grandfather, a man who threw laughter and light across my dark days, my hero, my steadying hand. To know him, to be in the presence of his radiant optimism, his sparkling wit, and the love in which he lavished everyone around him, was a privileged and a pleasure and an indescribable joy. In a life of almost unimaginable drama, he experienced supreme triumphs, but also brutal hardship, incomprehensible suffering, and the cruelty of his fellow man. He was an airman, a plane crash victim, a castaway, he was attacked by sharks and strafed by his enemy, he was a POW and a slave, he struggled with post-traumatic stress disorder. But Louie greeted every challenge of his long journey with a singular resilience, determination and ingenuity, with a ferocious will to survive and prevail, and with hope that knew no master. His life would not be a sad story because he would not allow it to be. His story is a lesson in the potential that lies within all of us to summon strength amid suffering, love in the face of cruelty, joy from sorrow. Of the myriad gifts he has left us, the greatest is the lesson of forgiveness.
Farewell to the grandest, most buoyant, most generous soul I ever knew. Thank you, Louie, for all you gave to me, tow our country, and to the world. I will never forget our last, laughing talk, your singsong "I love you! I love you!" and the words you whispered to me when you last hugged me goodbye, words that left me in happy tears. I will love you and miss you to the end of my days. Godspeed, sweet Louie.
Thank you.."

Read the book, get to know Louie and you will understand what Laura said about him.