Unbroken, by Laura Hillenbrand, is a book that took me a long time to read. It’s not that I didn’t have access to a copy; a friend sent it to me right after it was published, but the book sat on my shelf, unread. I thought about reading it several times and I had many people—including a woman I did not know who pushed the book on me in my Laundromat on a hot summer Sunday—tell me how much they loved it and how much I would love it too. But I just couldn’t rouse myself to start reading. I honestly never thought it would catch on—a story about a runner in WWII was no match for the mighty story of the champion horse Seabiscuit, the subject of Ms. Hillenbrand’s first book—but every week I opened the bestseller list there it was: its secure position on the nonfiction list proof that it was being read and adored by many.
Part of my hesitation was a perverse loyalty to Seabiscuit but I was also afraid that I would be disappointed. I couldn’t imagine how Ms. Hillenbrand, as great a writer as she is, could ever write anything nearly as good as Seabiscuit. And because I was afraid I’d be let down by her sophomore work, I denied myself the thrill of being absolutely engrossed by it for over three years. -
More:
No comments:
Post a Comment