Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family, and Fighting to Get Back on the Board (An Inspiring True Story)

Everyone may know already that this is the book about the 13 year-old surfer who lost her arm because of a shark attack. What they should also know is that this book was meant to be read by people of almost every age starting at 9 or 10 years old. Its language is accessible to fifth, sixth, and seventh graders. I'm actually using it in the classroom, and I have students talking about life lessons that Bethany shares: about being good team players, good losers, patient, and courageous in the face of adversity. In addition, we cover reading comprehension skills, such as main idea, author's purpose, drawing inferences, paragraph types, vocabulary, and grammar skills. Readers also get to know about Bethany's family, which is so important to her strong-willed nature. She goes into great details explaining how her parents and brothers helped develop her courageous character to be able to sustain a quite "tragic" incident. Courage in a 13-year-old child doesn't come out of the blue. Family and faith make the difference. This book is good not only if you plan to use it in the classroom, it's to be read by anyone who wants to find out the true source of courage. No need for self-help books with this one. It's down to earth and her description of family life and community life gives us the basics for overcoming obstacles and being successful - no quick gimmicks here. It's well written. The vocabulary and sentence structure of the book are appropriate for middle school students. Highly recommended.

Bethany is an inspiration to all! I'm glad I got this book and not the original. In this book she goes behind the scenes of her movie "Soul Surfer". At the end of the book she keeps a journal of the whole movie experience. From picking out the actors to the day the movie was released. It's so awesome to see whole process! I love how she was so open about her faith and just laid it out black and white, plain and simple. Even while filming the movie she would constantly tell the director(Sean McNamara) to keep her faith as the main focus of the movie. Not only did she want to be a inspiration to the world but she wanted to do it through Jesus Christ. This is a book for all ages. Even if she wrote this as a teenager she has the maturity and wisdom that goes way beyond that. I'm 22 years old and I found this book so compelling. I could not put it down! I to am a Christian and in this world we live in it so easy for girls to sell themselves out, especially being in Hollywood. Bethany said in her book that she wants to continue to stay humble and be a good example to young girls out there, even after being famous. How cool is that! Not only has this surfer shown how talented and ambitious she is but, she got to show the world that with Jesus all things are possible! Thanks Bethany! :)

I had no idea this girl was as amazing as she is! I knew she had been through a lot, but I never knew she was so strong in her Christian faith. It was a fast read that's so worth it! I also enjoyed the 5 year update at the end of the book (since this book was written 5+ years ago) and the movie journal she has that talks about the movie that came out last month. If I had known this book was out, I would have read it years ago! My hubby is reading it now. I just love how this girl chose to face her trials. She's an amazing girl. :) I hope to meet her one day...

A great read about an inspiring young surfer Bethany Hamilton who dreamed of being a professional surfer from Kauai, Hawaii. She was attacked by a shark and lost her arm. The story is about the day leading up to the shark attack and the months following with the uncertainty that she would ever be able to surf again much less compete and surf professionally. She inspired an entire generation of young women by getting back on her board, competing, and surfing professionally.

I bought this for my grade school aged niece (it's a young adult readers book), but decided to read it first. Who can forget Bethany's story of getting her arm bit off by a huge shark? It was interesting to learn about her family. Both of her parents moved to Hawaii when they were young to follow their passion for surfing. They met up while working at the island's resorts, and raised their kids to surf as soon as they could. Bethany is a very accomplished surfer, with endorsements from surfing clothes and board manufacturers, and it's uplifting to know she is still surfing and still doing well in competitions after the accident. Bethany mentions that she is happy to do interviews (which she admits are tedious) as long as she can mention what Christ has done for her life.

I saw the movie, but it just seemed like the real story would be even more interesting. I'm not too good about reading the books I've bought, but an audio book hit the spot as I can listen to this during my commute instead of mindless DJ chatter. I was right about there being more to the story, and I really enjoyed it. The audio book also includes updates from Bethany about the process of making the movie and her interactions with the people involved. I think these are the notes that are included in the "movie tie-in" version of the paperback. The only "complaint" I have is that the woman they chose to do the reading is obviously older than the person whose voice she represents. I'm not sure how old the reader is, but she sounds like she's at least in her 20's. Most of the time it's not an issue, but someone who sounded closer to Bethany's age would have been better. The "over too soon" refers to the relatively short duration (4 cd's, so about four hours total). Still a great purchase overall and highly recommended.

Good book. We liked that actual photos are included. This is a very inspirational true story. Her story could also serve as an encouragement to others.

good

Have only just started reading the book. I'm up to the second chapter and it's such a great story, it holds a lot of inspirations when you think you can't do anything, think of Bethany and how she got it done! Bethany is a wonderful inspiration to me!

The book is even better than I expected, if not for the price you'd never said it is an used book.As for the story... wow. Totally motivating and awe inspiring.

Great for teens

I am actually reading this with my year 3 ESL class (12/13 year old kids with first language German)They are loving it so far! The language is at a good level, the book is relateable and the pictures in the middle make it also a bit more engaging

Livre en anglais facile à lire. L'histoire de cette jeune fille vous tient en haleine, d'autant plus qu'elle est vraie.Son courage est admirable.Je ne suis pas croyante de la même façon qu'elle mais je suis contente de savoir que ce tragique accident n'a pas détruit sa vie et qu'elle est heureuse et aide les autres à surmonter leurs difficultés.