"Unbroken" - why am I listening to this? It's awful!

[MIch elle]

I'm almost done with listening to Unbroken and it's making me hate the Japanese! It's on so many lists of great books to read that I thought it must be good - NOT! It's depressing.

 

Anyone else read Unbroken?

Edited June 17, 2011 by MIch elle
typo

[LaxMom]

Huh. That book was just recommended by a friend.

:lurk5:

[Julie in Austin]

You need to stick with it--the ending will put some things into perspective.

 

That said, it is harsh and violent.

 

Not sure how to address your issue about the Japanese except to say that while they were clearly brutal during the war, that is hardly the fault of their descendents 60 years later . . .

[Halcyon]

I found it fascinating. My world history, particularly re the World Wars, is severely lacking and this was an amazing way to learn more. Very sad, I agree, but amazing.

[TammyinTN]

On my reading list for the summer. Thanks for the information.

[lmrich]

Stick with it! I wanted to give it up and then thought, "wow! if he survived that surely I can have enough fortitude to read about his torture; he had to endure it. It is a fantastic book. I bought it for my dad for Father's Day.

[deacongirl]

I'm a bit of a hypocrite b/c it has been sitting on my bedside table for a month and I have not opened it yet as I knew there were parts that would be difficult...but it is history. Do we hate the Germans after reading The Diary of Anne Frank? Or, um, Americans after reading Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee? And as someone commented, I probably should start reading it today as I am sitting here feeling sorry for myself and my small challenges compared to what the subject of that book endured.

[RanchGirl]

I felt the same way about Unbroken. It was fascinating but very emotionally difficult to read! It does feel a little better at the end though.

[JudoMom]

I read it and I loved it. About 1/4-1/3 of the way in, I almost quit. It was too dark and too depressing. I forced myself to give it one more go, and I am so very, very glad I did.

[Mom-ninja.]

I plan to read it. I know it will be hard. I have a hard time processing the bad in life.

 

I wonder what my grandfather would think of it. I'd love to get his opinion, but I doubt he'll read it. He watched "Flag of Our Fathers" by Clint Eastwood, and was very angry. He told me he'd like to meet Mr. Eastwood and tell him a thing or two about the real war, and then proceeded to call Mr. Eastwood a whole list of descriptive names. I haven't watched either movie that Clint Eastwood made about WWII out of respect for my grandfather.

 

Every now and then my grandfather will slip into a mood and talk about the war. I wish I could have him talk to my kids. One of the best ways to learn history is to actually talk face to face with someone who was there. Of course you're getting his/her point of view, but that's the same with books and movies.

 

I have an incredible urge to call my grandpa now. :001_smile:

[Rose in BC]

I found it fascinating. My world history, particularly re the World Wars, is severely lacking and this was an amazing way to learn more. Very sad, I agree, but amazing.

 

:iagree:

[LynnG in Arizona]

I recently read this book as well, and thought it was wonderful. It is a truly gripping story, almost to the point of being a page-turner. But I agree that it is also horrible and depressing. I can do this type of book or movie only every once in while, similar to stories about the Holocaust. I know that Holocaust stories are important, and yet they are very rarely anything but utterly heartbreaking. I have to do them in small, infrequent doses.

 

Spoiler alert for those who haven't read the book:

 

 

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I read the book about 6 or 8 weeks ago. A few days later, I read a newspaper article in our Honolulu paper that described Louis Zamperini's recent lecture that he had JUST given a few days before at the USS Missouri, which is docked in Pearl Harbor.

 

I literally shouted with frustration!! He had visited Honolulu and given a public talk the very day after I finished his amazing story . . . and I missed it because his visit was not publicized in any way (not that I'm aware of, anyway). GRRRRRRRRR. I could have met this amazing man and listened to him speak first hand!! I called my brother - a history teacher with a profound appreciation for all heroes, who had given me the book to read - and we gnashed our teeth together in frustration.

 

On a positive note, the newspaper article said that Mr. Zamperini is now 93 or 94 and still amazingly active and sharp. What a truly incredible life he has led!!

[Paintedlady]

Do we hate the Germans after reading The Diary of Anne Frank? Or, um, Americans after reading Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee?

 

I don't know that hate is the right word but for me, but those bad feelings about people are sometimes hard to shake.

[Tressa]

I have read it. It was very hard for me to read. I wanted to keep reading, but I would have to put it down and come back to it. He is an amazing man.

 

 

That said, I will never, ever believe that people are not shark food regardless of what the Discovery Channel says during shark week.

[Slartibartfast]

I plan to read it. I know it will be hard. I have a hard time processing the bad in life.

 

I wonder what my grandfather would think of it. I'd love to get his opinion, but I doubt he'll read it. He watched "Flag of Our Fathers" by Clint Eastwood, and was very angry. He told me he'd like to meet Mr. Eastwood and tell him a thing or two about the real war, and then proceeded to call Mr. Eastwood a whole list of descriptive names. I haven't watched either movie that Clint Eastwood made about WWII out of respect for my grandfather.

 

Every now and then my grandfather will slip into a mood and talk about the war. I wish I could have him talk to my kids. One of the best ways to learn history is to actually talk face to face with someone who was there. Of course you're getting his/her point of view, but that's the same with books and movies.

 

I have an incredible urge to call my grandpa now. :001_smile:

 

 

You should, my grandfathers talked to us about the war and they are treasured memories for me

[lovemyboys]

You need to stick with it--the ending will put some things into perspective.

 

That said, it is harsh and violent.

 

Not sure how to address your issue about the Japanese except to say that while they were clearly brutal during the war, that is hardly the fault of their descendents 60 years later . . .

 

I saw the man interviewed a few months ago. Amazing story, amazing perseverence. If you're in the midst of the war scenes, some of the best is yet to come.

 

There's a documentary coming out concerning the Rape of Nanking that I just read about. The review said it's very well done, but obviously the subject is the systematic brutalization of Chinese by the Japanese during this period.

 

So many millions of people died in the 20th century. It's not easy reading or listening, but it's important for us to know the history....I'm old enough to remember some of it. : (

[StephanieZ]

I thought it was great, lol.

 

It did make me pretty creeped out by the Japanese, however. That said, I guess it is a pretty true book, so reality is reality. . . and I guess there is some value in knowing the truth. People, even (nearly) entire populations, do simply evil things. . . This is true. What does it say about us?

 

That is a really important, big thought. I mean, 200 years ago, those of us who have ancestors here in the USA. . . well, many held slaves (and the vast majority would have if they could have afforded them). Brutalized them! And, what about the Native Americans -- what we did to them! Exterminated them! And, what about out treatment of the Japanese Americans during WW2? And, then there's our treatment of the LDS just decades ago. . . and . . . and. . . So, yeah, people do horrible things. Those same people could choose evil or good. Why? Why not?

 

I also really liked the survival aspects of the book. . . such a will to survive!! Such grit! I also loved that he was a runner, b/c as I an amateur runner who loves to run, I can relate to the running spirit/drive.

[deacongirl]

I think it is important to distinguish between the people who committed atrocities (and those who stood by at the time) and entire races/nationalities. So--I hate what the individual Japanese soldiers did to my great-uncle's friends in the Pacific during WWII and I think there is value in understanding what in the culture led to that point...but I don't hate the Japanese (or the Germans). I also hate what individual American soldiers did at My Lai but have enormous respect for Hugh Thompson. I think individuals of every race and culture have the capacity for evil and also for selfless courage and I think it is valuable to learn about these episodes in history no matter how painful.

[kalanamak]

I don't know that hate is the right word but for me, but those bad feelings about people are sometimes hard to shake.

 

I am reminded of what ?Goethe? said about the Germans: wonderful one at a time, but intolerable in a group. My brother turned it into something like, "Liberals are like conservatives: not so bad one at a time, but insufferable in groups".

 

Many wars are appalling, and I knew many an old man who never forgave "the Japs", but some of the most amazing individuals I've met have been Japanese.

[Vida Winter]

Stick with it until the end - it is an amazing story - one of my very favorites this year. I can read or listen to books like this -- but I can't watch the movie versions. They will no doubt make a movie of this book and I won't be seeing it.

[deacongirl]

Just in case anyone reading isn't aware (as my dad and uncle were not and continue to argue that it is a perfectly acceptable term even today) re: "Jap"

from wikipedia:

 

Later popularized during World War II to describe those of Japanese descent, "Jap" was then commonly used in newspaper headlines to refer to the Japanese and Imperial Japan. "Jap" became a derogatory term during the war, more so than "Nip."[2] Veteran and author Paul Fussell explains the usefulness of the word during the war for creating effective propaganda by saying that "Japs" "was a brisk monosyllable handy for slogans like 'Rap the Jap' or 'Let's Blast the Jap Clean Off the Map.'"[2] Some in the United States Marine Corps tried to combine the word "Japs" with "apes" to create a new description, "Japes", for the Japanese; this neologism never became popular.[2]

In the United States the term is now considered derogatory; the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary notes it is "usually disparaging".[5] In the United Kingdom it is considered derogatory, and the Oxford dictionary defines it as offensive.[6]

[mhg]

I don't know if this has been posted here yet or not, but I'm compelled to post this.

 

If you haven't seen the KEN BURNS documentary (like 6 discs) called "THE WAR" ---- it is a MUST.

Here's the preview:

 

 

 

Your library SHOULD have it. If not, strongly encourage them to procure it. If not, you can order it from

http://www.shoppbs.org/product/index.jsp?productId=3740329&cp=&sr=1&kw=the+war++ken+burns&origkw=The+War++Ken+Burns&parentPage=search

 

It shows all fronts of the war (european/pacific) and is packed with interviews of the vets and from their families as well.

 

It has won numerous awards and shows you WW2 like nothing else out there. It is PACKED with live, front-line footage of the war. It has given me a new understanding of this most important period in our history. It will be required viewing for my high schooler (when that day comes).

Edited June 20, 2011 by mhg

[Rhonda in TX]

I think individuals of every race and culture have the capacity for evil and also for selfless courage and I think it is valuable to learn about these episodes in history no matter how painful.

 

This is a very important point. Every country has something to be ashamed of in their past. I also do not think that we are ever past this type of behavior and need to be aware of that.

[glennis_b]

I think I'll put it on my list for the summer.