The Aviators: Eddie Rickenbacker, Jimmy Doolittle, Charles Lindberg, and the Epic Age of Flight
Author(s): Winston Groom
This is the fascinating story of three extraordinary heroes who defined aviation during the great age of flight. These cleverly interwoven tales of their heart-stopping adventures take us from the feats of World War I through the heroism of World War II and beyond, including daring military raids and survival-at-sea. With the world in peril in World War II, each man set aside great success and comfort to return to the skies for his most daring mission yet. Doolittle, a brilliant aviation innovator, would lead the daring Tokyo Raid to retaliate for Pearl Harbour; Lindbergh, hero of the first solo flight across the Atlantic, would fly combat missions in the South Pacific; and Rickenbacker, World War I flying ace, would bravely hold his crew together while facing near-starvation and circling sharks after his plane went down in a remote part of the Pacific. Groom's rich narrative tells their intertwined stories-from broken homes to Medals of Honour (all three would receive it); barnstorming to the greatest raid of World War II; front-page triumph to anguished tragedy; and near-death to ultimate survival-as all took to the sky, time and again, to become exemplars of the spirit of the greatest generation.
Product Information
"This is a winner, combining an engaging narrative and appropriate documentation into one solid study of three iconic aviators and their times." --"Library Journal," starred review "A gripping document of a brilliant era in our history and a few of the men who helped make it so." --"Kirkus Reviews," starred review "As Mr. Groom's absorbing narrative unfolds, we see one man enduring a horrendous ordeal on the open sea; another nearly losing his life in a bombing run; and yet another finding a sort of redemption for his battered public image." -"The Wall Street Journal""Groom's rich narrative tell the intertwined stories of these aeronautical pioneers as they took to the air to become exemplars of the spirit of the "greatest generation." "--Flight Journal" "That the imagination that conceived Forrest Gump could conjure up fresh ways to tell stories of American history is astonishing...Groom's epic story is a tribute...Readers of all his fiction and nonfiction might well feel inclined to testify that he is fast becoming a national treasure. Forrest Gump would agree." --"The Advocate" "Winston Groom writes history like a novelist. Readers will appreciate his careful and accurate use of aviation and military terminology, and description of each aircraft in the narratives. Groom handles this complex subject in clear, understandable terms, woven into a great air war story." -American Aviation Historical Society "Groom is at his best sharing history through the personal stories of the people involved. Not only is this history a learning experience, it is a joy to experience the suspenseful adventures of these extraordinary aviators as they spent their lives developing and promoting aviation in this country. An important narrative not to be missed!" --Stephanie Crowe, Page and Palette Bookstore This will be an alternate selection in History Book Club, Military Book Club, and Book-of-the-Month Club. "From the H
WINSTON GROOM is the author of 14 previous books of nonfiction and fiction, including Shiloh 1862, Vicksburg 1863, Patriotic Fire, Shrouds of Glory, Forrest Gump, and Conversations with the Enemy (with Duncan Spencer), which was a Pulitzer Prize finalist.
General Fields
- :
- : National Geographic Society
- : National Geographic Society
- : 0.367
- : 01 November 2014
- : 229mm X 152mm
- : United States
- : 01 February 2015
- : books
Special Fields
- : Winston Groom
- : Paperback
- : 1215
- : 448
- : 50 black and white photographs