Lincoln County's Hooked on Reading Roundtable Discussion Group will be gathering at Spectrum Generations Coastal Community Center, 521 Main Street in Damariscotta on February 15 at 1 p.m.  

Join the center's book group as they enter into a lively discussion and interactive roundtable conversation about "Unbroken," a World War II story of survival, resilience and redemption, written by Laura Hillenbrand the author of Seabiscuit.

On a May afternoon in 1943, an Army Air Forces bomber crashed into the Pacific Ocean and disappeared, leaving only a spray of debris and a slick of oil, gasoline, and blood. Then, on the ocean surface, a face appeared. It was that of a young lieutenant, the plane's bombardier, who was struggling to a life raft and pulling himself aboard. So began one of the most extraordinary odysseys of the Second World War.

According to the Washingtonian “A warning: after cracking open 'Unbroken' you may find yourself dog tired the next day, having spent most of the night fending off sleep with coffee refills, eager to find out whether the story of Louis Zamperini, Olympic runner turned (WWII prisoner of war), ends in redemption or despair. In Hillenbrand's (hands), it's nothing less than a marvel – a book worth losing sleep over.”

Laura Hillenbrand is an American author of books and magazine articles. Born in Fairfax, Virginia, Hillenbrand spent much of her childhood riding bareback “screaming over the hills” of her father's Sharpsburg, Md., farm. A favorite of hers was “Come On Seabiscuit,” a 1963 kiddie book. “I read it to death, my little paperback copy,”  Hillenbrand said.

Questions the roundtable will discuss:

1. “Unbroken” is a classic inspirational story, but it lies somewhat on the surface, offering little in the way of psychological depth. Do you wish there were more instrospection in Zamperini's account? Or do you feel this story is rich enough as it is?

2. Does this book make you wonder at mankind's capacity for cruelty? What accounts for it-especially on the part of the Japanese, a highly cultured and civilized society? (The same question, of course, has been applied to the Nazis.)

3. Why, after World War II, did the medical profession fail to acknowledge Post Traumatic Stress Disorder? After all, this was the mid-20th century, and psychiatry was a fairly established discipline. Plus, the horrors of World War I were only one generation behind. What took so long?

At Spectrum's Hooked on Reading Book Group discussion February 15 discuss why readers and critics alike have described “Unbroken” as gripping, almost impossible to put down. Was that your experience as well? How do you account for the page-turning quality given the grim subject material?

Also, would your reading experience have been different if you didn't know the outcome?

Seasonal visitors, baby boomers, young people and home schooled students are always welcome to join the book group's monthly discussions. Participation fee $1. For more information about the Hooked on Reading or Spectrum Generations please contact Marianne Pinkham at 207-563-1363 or e-mail Marianne at mpinkham@spectrumgenerations.org/.