Unbroken

I've wanted to write a review of Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand since I read it back in December. I'm a bit behind, but I still remember the book very well, and better late than never, right?

Unbroken is a very powerful story and was by far my favorite book I read in 2014. Ultimately, it was a big reminder of the sacrifice so many men have made for our country. It was a huge eye opener of the brutally physical and mental suffering experienced by so many during WWII.

I shed several tears when I read this book. My heart ached and I couldn't understand how anyone could go through what these POWs' endured. I remember thinking the same thoughts I had when I read The Hiding Place, a story of Corrie Ten Boom who had survived living in a concentration camp. Why are some people so evil? How can they be so terribly cruel to hurt other human beings so?

But just just like Corrie Ten Boom's story, the incredible true story of Unbroken teaches about forgiveness and healing. It's another example of proof, that despite the darkness and evil in this world, there is a God whose hand is at work in the most impossible situations.

Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand

Unbroken is a true story about Olympian, Louis Zamperini from Torrance California, who dreamed of breaking the 4 minute mile. As a boy, he was constantly getting into trouble, stealing, getting into fights. His parents didn't know what to do to get him to stop. But when Louie was in high school, his brother made him join the track club. At first Louie didn't like running. But he soon began to win races and beat records. He soon went from the town trouble maker to the the town's pride and idol. They called him the "Torrance Tornado".

At the age of only 19, Zamperini qualified and competed in the 1936 Summer Olympics for the 5000 meter run. He finished 8th place, but his last lap was a speedy 56 seconds. Adolf Hitler was so impressed, he insisted on shaking Louie's hand. 

Louie worked hard on his running after the Olympics with a dream of running the mile in the 1940 Olympics that was to take place in Japan. Many, including his brother believed he could break 4 minutes and even win the Olympics at the rate he was going. 

But Louie's dreams were crushed when World War II broke out. In 1941 he enlisted in the US Army Corps and earned a commission as second lieutenant. He was deployed as a bombardier to the Pacific Island, Funafuti. In 1943, he was assigned on a rescue mission. The airplane due to mechanical problems, crashed in the middle of the ocean. Only three men survived...Louis Zamperini being one of them. 

After 47 days on the ocean with no food, the men were spotted and captured by a Japanese ship. Louie was now a Prisoner of War in Japan. There, he was held in several different POW camps, being beaten and brutally abused along with the many other prisoners in the camps. Many died of starvation or suffered from malnutrition and dysentery. Louie was especially tortured and severely beaten by a prison guard, Mutshiro Watanabe, also called by the POWs', the "Bird". 

When the war came to an end in 1945, the prisoners were released and sent home to their families. 

After Louie's return, he married Cynthia Applewhite. For four years he suffered post war trauma through nightmares of Watanabe. He began drinking heavily to try to forget his horrifying experience. But in 1949, he attended a Billy Graham evangelical crusade with his wife, and gave his life to Christ.

After that, he forgave Watanabe and all the other Japanese prison guards who had mistreated him and all the other POWs he had known. 

In the 1998 Olympics in Nagano Japan, four days before his 81st birthday, Louie Zamperini ran a leg in the lighting of the Olympic torch. Since he had become a born again Christian and learned how to forgive those who had abused and beaten him, Louie had lived a selfless and cheerful life to its fullest. 

He had become an inspiration speaker and spoke specifically on forgiveness.

After reading this book, my life has not been the same. I was crushed and horrified at reading about the pain that was afflicted on him and other POWs. But at the end I was so inspired at how God got him through and showed him grace.

Louie Zamperini recently passed away just this last July, 2014. He was an extraordinary man and has become such a model and inspiration in my life. I most definitely recommend this book! Yes, it's difficult to read at times, but I think it's important to open our eyes and be reminded of the men who have fought and continue to fight for our freedom. It changed my life for the better and I hope it will do the same for you.

“The one who forgives never brings up the past to that person's face. When you forgive, it's like it never happened. True forgiveness is complete and total.” Louis Zamperini 

Help Green Gables Fables Make Season 2 Happen!

Remember a couple blog posts ago, I ranted about the Green Gables Fables web series? If not, you must go back and read Everyone Needs Some Green Gables in Their Life...

The first season was a no budget modern adaption of Lucy Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables. The creators all living 2000 miles away from each other have never actually met in person. But by conversing over the internet, and putting their minds together, this wonderful and realistic series was created.

At times, it was easy to forget that the teenage red head vlogging to the internet about her life... was in fact a fiction character. Each actor portrayed their character so well and naturally; Lucy Montgomery's beloved story came to life beautifully in a new and modern way.

The entire first season was filmed in Utah, with a new video posted every week. It is a delightful series that has developed quite a fan base in the process of creating these amazing videos. If you have not yet watched any of the Green Gables Fables episodes, or haven't seen the whole season yet, go do that right now! Anyone who loves Anne of Green Gables will fall in love all over again with this fun story.


After the first season ended, we waited eagerly to find out if a Season 2 would be happening any time soon in the future.

Well...we need not wait any longer! Green Gables Fables has just announced that they are planning on filming Season 2 this June!

But they need your help. They are hoping to film the next season as a modern adaption of 'Anne of the Island' in Toronto Canada. Because transportation, housing--and other necessities for filming in this new location--will certainly come at a cost...Green Gables Fables needs help raising $10,000 (CAD) by March 20th to make Season 2 possible!

If funded, this new season will premier in September. This time, Anne will be  beginning her first year at the university in a new town. We will be seeing some of our favorite characters and new ones as well!

Help fund Green Gables Fables Season 2, and we will get to experience another one of L. Montgomery's novel's as a modern day video blog!

Oh...and if you help fund this amazing project you will receive something in return as well. Depending on the pledge you decide to make you could get some cute buttons, or a poster, an adorable kindred spirit t-shirt...or other fun Green Gables Fables souvenirs!

Help Green Gables Fables make Season 2 happen! With your help and generosity, we will have yet another amazing modern adaption of classic literature to enjoy and be a part of.

To make your pledge click here.

Tunes that Get the Creative Juices Flowing

I am basically listening to music ALL THE TIME.

And that includes my writing time. I usually make sure it's not blasting so it isn't distracting, but loud enough to get me in my writing mood and get the creative juices flowing.

The music I listen to while writing, usually depends either on what I'm writing or what time of day it is. I thought I'd make a list of some of my favorite writing music.

Mozart-- Call me old fashioned, but I believe in the theory that classical music is good for the brain. Mozart is usually the first Pandora station I turn on in the morning when I sit down at my desk. Its energetic rhythm puts me in a good and focused mood. I think it's great wake up and "ready to start the day" music.

Jim Brickman-- A lot of times, I'll listen to Jim Brickman and other piano music, such as 'The Piano Guys', 'Lorie Line', 'John Tesh', and 'Michael W. Smith', during the late morning, or early afternoon. At this point, I've been writing for several hours, and could use some pretty and soothing music to help relieve any stress and recuperate from the hard work I just put in. This is also a good time of the day to listen to it, since I'm already wide awake, and it's not late enough in the day to make me sleepy.

Taliesin Orchestra-- Whenever I'm writing fantasy, Taliesin Orchestra's Pandora station is the best to listen to! I highly recommend it to anyone who is writing about fantasy or fairy tales. It's beautiful and mysterious songs usually find its way into the soundtrack of my story as I write. One of my favorite artist's that often comes on this station, is Blackmoore's Night. It's Medieval style is always inspiring new scenes and ideas for my writing.

Carla Bruni-- I don't listen to vocal music while writing very much. It makes it difficult to concentrate and most the time I end up singing along instead of typing. (Disney music and writing DO NOT work well together.) But I love Carla Bruni's soft and beautiful voice. I like listening to her in the early evenings just before dinner. Plus...she sings in French so I can't really sing along anyway. ;)

While writing fiction, the music I listen to almost always depends on the scene I'm writing and the feelings, whereabouts, and mood of my characters at the time. So, if my book takes place during Christmas time, then I will be jammin' out to the Holiday tunes no matter what time of year it is!

I also create playlists for stories I'm working on and will listen to those sometimes while writing them.

As you can see, the music I listen to while writing is all pretty mellow. It definitely helps me focus and keeps me relaxed as my fingers and brain go to work.

I'd love to find out what tunes you listen to while writing or studying as well. Please share in the comments!

~Allissa

Everyone Needs Some Green Gables in Their Life...

This is for all you bookworms! 

This year, I have started a book club with a small group of friends and named it 'Everything Literature.' Our idea is to read a variety of fiction books this year...some classic, modern, and fantasy.

This month we are beginning Lucy Montgomery's beloved "Anne of Green Gables" books. It's been a long time since I read the first book, and I never read the rest of the series. I don't think I can even describe how excited I am to read these. Even though these books were written for young girls, I can honestly say, it doesn't matter how old you are to enjoy Anne Shirley's entertaining tale.  If you, like me, grew up watching the movies, you know how Anne can make a person laugh their head off.

As I'm rereading the first book, I find myself revisiting my childhood days, once again laughing and rolling my eyes at Anne's vivid imagination and habit of getting into mischief. I don't know why I never continued reading the series. Especially since we all know a certain someone (*ahem* Gilbert Blythe) plays a very special part.

But this is why I'm glad we're reading the whole series this year...It's nice to read some good classic, easy reading, literature, and share thoughts about the books with friends. If you too enjoy Anne and Gilbert, and whether you've read the books or haven't yet... And would like to share the Green Gables experience with a literature loving group, we'd love to have you join our club!
Just become friends with me on Goodreads and send a request to join my group, Everything Literature!

And while we're on the topic of Anne... I HAVE to share one of my newest discoveries. Okay it's not MY discovery. My friend Michaela told me about it first. You may have heard of the Lizzie Bennet Diaries, a modern retelling of "Pride in Prejudice". It was filmed as a creative video blog on Youtube. Well, since the vlog became a big hit, fiction web series based on classic literature are becoming big on the internet. Several other books have been made into modern web series.

And one of these, which has become my ultimate FAVORITE, is 'The Green Gables Fables'. Why is it my favorite? Well for one...the production quality isn't quite professional as other fiction web series such as the LBD and others. And why is this a good thing you ask? Because it seems much more REAL.

Because the characters are all in high school including Anne, the videos seem like real video blogs created by a real teen. The writers and creators did a splendid job at making this lovely story come to life.

And can I just say...Anne does a great job at bringing Miss. Shirley to our generation. As a very talkative and imaginative foster child, she comes to live at Green Gables. There she makes new friends, gets into scrapes, and captures the heart of her new foster parents, Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert... this delightful classic is told in a modern way yet stays very close and accurate to the book.

The first season was just completed last week, which I'm very sad about. But it ended perfectly and we "fabler's" are keeping our fingers crossed for a second season!

So, if you enjoy video blogs, classic literature, and of course the wonderful tales of Anne Shirley...do check out the Green Gables Fables on YouTube!

Note: Gilbert...well...let's just say the modern day Gilbert Blythe with his dimples and charm is one of the many reasons this web series is well worth watching. <3

P.S. Another reason I love this series is it is very clean. It doesn't have any language, suggestive elements, or crude humor. That makes it refreshing and enjoyable. I hope you'll love it too!

The Power of Words

Words are not just words. This might sound kind of nerdy, but do you ever wonder how many words you've spoken in one day...or one week? And what about the unspoken words that have gone through your head?

I've never really thought of that. Until I started keeping a weekly word count of my writing projects. I remember back in the summer when I was working on a story and the creative juices were oozing out. At the end of the week, I realized I typed over seventeen thousand words just on that project.

And I thought, "Whoa, that's a lot." Then it made me think of all the words that I speak, think, and read everyday. And though it must be quite a lot, I was reminded of the power only one word, one sentence, one comment can have.

A sentence like, "I love you," can cause so many different emotions and feelings. The single word, "Goodbye" can break a heart. It can also fill a person with the anticipation to be reunited again.

The words grace, mercy, and hope fill us with the beautiful reminder of our Savior who gave up everything for us. The words, Redeemer, Prince of Peace, and Son of God are titles that represent who He truly is and always will be.

And this is why I LOVE writing. I love words. (I know I'm sounding nerdy again! You probably imagine me sitting with my nose in a dictionary all day!) As writers we have the power to use words to reach out...to make an impact. We have the power to use words to touch hearts in a very powerful way.

A tale whether it's true or fiction reveals the characters' feelings through words and the meanings and expressions of those words. They can draw a person into that tale; so that the reader will experience what that character goes through. The readers will feel pain when the character is hurting, joy when the character is smiling, anxiousness when the character is in great danger.

So just think...if one word can make a powerful impact on someone's life...what can those thousands of other words do for them?

As a writer, you have the ability to magically reach out and touch people in ways they've never been touched. All through the words you write.

This isn't a post telling you how to write, what words to use and what words not to use. I'm merely describing the gift of writing from a view you may have never quite thought of or really reflected on before. And maybe you have, but sometimes it's nice to be reminded of the encouraging impact you are making as a writer!

Whether one or thousands of people have been touched by your story...your touching someone. And that's why God gave you the gift and desire to write.

So next time you write over a thousand words, think of all the emotions you've just put your reader through. Think of what you've just created...and smile. With those thousand words, you've just made a character come alive. You've just poured out your heart. All through the power of words.