To continue our monthly series of book lists, the Washington Talking Book & Braille Library would like to recommend the following fiction and nonfiction titles about flying. Flying has fascinated people ever since they realized that birds could fly, but they could not.
However, books can let your imagination soar off the ground.
Blue Skies, Black Wings by Samuel L. Broadnax
Black journalist relates his flying experiences after enlisting in the Army Air Corp at age seventeen and graduating as a fighter pilot from the Tuskegee Institute in 1945. Recounts his and other African American pilots' military careers and their struggles with racism and segregation. Also discusses historical black aviators. 2007. Cassette Book RC 67179. Digital Book DB 67179. Also available as a downloadable digital book from BARD: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.nls/db.67179.
Night Over Water by Ken Follett
It is September 1939, and England has just declared war on Germany. A group of passengers, fleeing the approaching conflict, board a luxurious Pan Am Clipper for a thirty-hour flight to New York. Among them are an English fascist and his family, a Jewish refugee, a jewel thief, a princess, and an American widow and her brother. None are prepared for the nightmare journey over the ocean. Some strong language and some descriptions of sex. Bestseller. 1991. Braille Book BR 8793. Cassette Book RC 34013. Large Print Book LP 21834. Digital Book DB 34013 is available as a downloadable book from BARD: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.nls/db.34013.
In the Company of Eagles by Ernest Gann
France, 1917. Having witnessed his friend's brutal death in combat, young French pilot Paul Chamay seeks to destroy the responsible German lieutenant, ace flyer Sebastian Kupper, who himself grows weary of war and killing. The brave men finally meet in a chance duel in the sky. 1966. Cassette Book RC 63632. Digital Book is available as a downloadable book from BARD: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.nls/db.63632.
Inside the Sky by William Langewiesche
The author, the son of a test pilot, shares his pilots-eye view of flight, describing what the pilot sees, thinks, and feels, as well as how our vision has been altered by our liberation from the ground. 1998. Cassette Book CBA 7269. Digital Book DBW 7269. Also available as a downloadable digital book from WTBBL: http://www.wtbbl.org/login.aspx.
Chuck Yeager and the Bell X-1: Breaking the Sound Barrier by Dominick Pisano
Explains the complex technological challenges encountered in building the aircraft that broke the sound barrier in 1947. Also describes the fame that enveloped its pilot, Chuck Yeager. Places the achievement in the context of the Cold War and highlights the teamwork that went into the enterprise. 2006. Cassette Book RC 68310. Digital Book DB 68310. Also available as a downloadable digital book from BARD: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.nls/db.68310.
The Airplane: How Ideas Gave Us Wings by Jay P. Spenser
Former curator at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum chronicles the innovations that solved technical challenges from aviation's conception to the development of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Discusses airplane construction: fuselage, wings, controls, propulsion, and landing gear. Portrays pioneers Sir George Cayley, Otto Lilienthal, Hugo Junkers, and others. 2008. Digital Book DB 70113. Also available as a downloadable digital book from BARD: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.nls/db.70113.
Wings by Danielle Steel
As a child, Cassie O'Malley knew that she wanted to be a pilot like her father. He refused to instruct her, so she got family friend and ace pilot Nick Galvin to give her lessons. Cassie becomes an outstanding pilot who enjoys participating in air shows. Desmond Williams sees her at one and offers her a job. Cassie accepts and becomes involved in an adventure bigger than she dreamed of. Some strong language and some descriptions of sex. Bestseller. Braille Book BR 10092. Cassette Book RC 39882. Large Print Book LP-11500.
Living on the Wind: Across the Hemisphere with Migratory Birds by Scott Weidensaul
Describes the drama of bird migration in the western hemisphere--the problems and the future outlook. Also discusses researchers, amateur birders, land managers, and others who study the birds' travel patterns and work to protect their sanctuaries. Covers southward journeys from Alaska, wintering grounds, nesting season, and northward flights. 1999. Cassette Book RC 62408. Digital Book DB 62048 is available as a downloadable digital book from BARD: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.nls/db.62048.