Bethany Hamilton was a normal 13 year-old girl. She loved to dress up and was planning to go out trick-or-treating for Halloween. She lived in Hawaii with her family and was a very competitive surfer. On Halloween, she and her best friend Alana were doing what they loved to do, surfing. They were relaxing on their boards just talking when the unthinkable happened. All of a sudden a shark came from out of nowhere and bit Bethany's arm off. She was so surprised and didn't really even feel pain when it happened. She calmly got herself to shore with the help of Alana and her father. Thus began her journey of learning to live with her disability. She is a good Christian girl, and she instinctively knew that Heavenly Father wouldn't give her any trials that she couldn't get through and that wouldn't be for her benefit in the long run. I LOVE the movie Soul Surfer, it's such a clean movie with an incredible story about Bethany and her family. I love how they talk about their faith, they are such amazing people. I put this book on hold at the library ages ago, because I wanted to read what Bethany herself said about her experience, I think everyone else must have had the same idea, because it took forever to get it! I was amazed a the depth she showed in this book. She was only 14 years old when she wrote it, and she talks about her faith and her life as if she were much older. I loved this book just as much as the movie!