Starred Review Growing up in Torrance, California, Louis Zamperini was a wild boy, a rebel who found redemption in running, ultimately competing in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. Then, in 1941, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps and became a bombardier, whose plane was shot down over the Pacific. Thus began a remarkable story of survival. For 47 days, he floated on a raft with scant food and water, surrounded by sharks. Finally, he was picked up by Japanese forces and made a prisoner of war. He was routinely and savagely beaten and humiliated by a sadistic guard the other prisoners nicknamed the Bird. Not released until the end of the war, Zamperini returned to the States. There, he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and began drinking heavily, until, while attending a Billy Graham crusade, he stopped drinking and began to find peace. This adaptation of Hillenbrand's adult best-seller is highly dramatic and exciting, as well as painful to read as it lays bare man's hellish inhumanity to man. It is inspirational, too, for despite violence, torture, and humiliation, Zamperini never lost his human dignity necessity, Hillenbrand graphically demonstrates, for survival. Heavily illustrated with black-and-white photographs, this is sure to attract a wide audience, not only of survival story fans but also of those looking for a story of one man's heroic triumph over all odds. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: With a film adaptation scheduled for December 2014 and a crossover teen audience for the best-selling adult account, this youth edition should have a wide audience.

This adaptation of Hillenbrand's best-selling adult version puts the Louis Zamperini story in teens' hands. Zamperini traded delinquency for adulation, becoming a runner on the 1938 Olympic track team; in WWII he survived a plane crash only to be captured as a POW; after battling alcoholism, he became a Christian crusader. The tension never wavers, creating a humdinger of a page-turner. Ind.

Gr 9 Up-Adapted from the best-selling adult book of the same name, this riveting account tells the story of Louis Zamperini, a thief turned track star, Olympian, airman, castaway, and prisoner of war. Born to Italian immigrants in 1917, Zamperini was heading down a path of crime (stealing, fighting) until his older brother Pete stepped in, encouraging him to join the track team. It wasn't long before Zamperini was winning every race, eventually going on to the 1936 Berlin Olympics. The book details how the 1940 Olympics were canceled due to World War II and describes how Zamperini was drafted into the U.S. Air Force. Writing in a gripping, intense tone, Hillenbrand relates how tragedy struck when Zamperini's plane was shot down and he and two other men spent 47 days in a life boat in the Pacific Ocean, fighting sharks, starvation, and dehydration, before being captured by the Japanese navy as prisoners of war. More than 100 engaging photographs appear throughout. This captivating book emphasizes the importance of determination, the will to survive against impossible odds, and support from family and friends. This adaptation softens some of the harsh details of POW life found in the adult version and has shortened the book by about a third. Though this is a strong, well-written work, the adult version is accessible and engaging; students are better off sticking with the original. Stephanie Farnlacher, Trace Crossings Elementary School, Hoover, AL

A teller of tall tales could not improve the true story of Louis Zamperini. His odyssey takes him from quick-footed neighborhood thief in the Roaring Twenties to Olympic athlete in 1936, to forty-seven days aboard a life raft, to the brutality of more than two years as a Japanese prisoner of war (POW) during World War II. After the war, he marries, but it is not a "Greatest Generation" success story, at least not in the beginning. Suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder and finding solace in alcohol, he winds up at a Billy Graham revival, where an equally grueling process of redemption begins.Hillenbrand's young adult version of her award-winning adult title has shed nearly eighty pages but remains true to Louie's story and its major subplots. She has judiciously removed some of the starkest horrors and sexual brutality of the Japanese POW camps, though enough remains for readers to glimpse the misery. With its breakneck pace and lean style, some adults may actually find this version more engaging. The teen revision arrives at an auspicious time. Zamperini died in July at age 97, and his inspiring story will be the subject of a film scheduled for release in December 2014. Get this one for teens who love war stories or great nonfiction. Get two copiespass the second along to adult readers interested in the details of Louie's story. Discussion materials with film tie-ins will be available for both texts. It is a strong contender for community reading initiatives across age groups.Donna L. Phillips.