I have not read a book that has gripped me this much in years.
I love reading, I adore stories but I need authenticity; even if it is fabricated.
Papillion- by Henri Charriere is a true story of adventure and the human spirit.
Actually I have not even finished it. I keep tearing myself away from it. Like a child with that one cherished candy bar to last a week, I don't want to finish it all in one go.
I wanted to share this treasure with as many people as possible asap.
Papillion, a man sentenced to life for a crime he did not commit does not react in a bitter, angry way but instead with a passionate determination to escape. This fire in his spirit urges him along in even the most soul crushing experiences. What really sets this character apart for me was that despite continuous suffering, and surviving numerous breaks, he discovers a sanguine view of mankind. His words allow you to view gangsters 'from the gutter' in a different way. They are human after all; and surprisingly some with virtues like heroes.
Words from the editor.....
"I have heard that it was a piece of oral literature, but I do not agree at all: no, even on the literary plane I think it an extraordinary talented book. I have believed that there is no great success, no overwhelming success, that is undeserved. It always has a deep underlying reason....I think that Papillion's immese success is in exact proportion to the book's worth and to what the author has lived through. But another man who had had the same life and had experienced the same adventure would have produced nothing from it at all. This is a literary prodigy. Merely having been a transported convict and having talent to give this tale its ring of truth. It is utterly fascinating reading."
I would love to sit on the beach and have a chat with this man. Actually, I would just like to look into his eyes. Hmmm eyes do say so much!
Another book to recommend while I am on the topic of unbreakable human spirits ....
Man's Search for Meaning by Victor Frankl
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