Booklist – February 2024
It’s February, and love is in the air! Metaphorically and literally. The sky has always been a place filled with adventure, the unknown, and a sense of romance. For centuries taking flight was a magical dream, a dream that came to life in the 20th century. Whether you celebrate Valentine’s Day or not, pop open a box of chocolates, or a bag of roasted peanuts and enjoy these titles that are sure to take you on a flight of fancy.
“Come fly with me, come fly away.”
Girls of Flight City by Lorraine Heath
In 1941 England three women become involved in training British airmen at a small-town Texas Airforce base. The Girls of Flight City do their part to bring a victorious end to WWII, and lives from both sides of the Atlantic are forever changed by love and loss.
Air Force Pilots Series 1&2
Flying in Love by Chalon Linton
Paige Hall is determined to avoid falling into another relationship when she meets Captain Jake Summers. When the couple faces a heartrending loss, they must find strength in each other and in their faith.
Fly Home to Me by Chalon Linton
Piper’s “Day in the Life: Hometown Heroes” magazine article theme was tailor-made for bighearted pilot Gabriel. Before long, Piper realizes she’s falling for Gabriel. But her tragic past has taught her one thing: no one stays. And the transient lifestyle of a military man leaves her no doubt that Gabriel will eventually abandon her too.
The Aviator’s Wife by Melanie Benjamin
In this fictionalized biography Anne Morrow, daughter of the ambassador to Mexico, meets the dashing Colonel Charles Lindbergh while visiting her family in Mexico City during the Christmas holidays and her life is changed forever.
Airframe by Michael Crichton
The flight of a Norton jet from Hong Kong to Denver ends badly: three dead and more than fifty others injured. Casey Singleton, Norton’s quality assurance rep, must determine what caused the mid-air accident before a huge contract is jeopardized. Strong language.
Nonfiction
Runway Dust: Airport Adventures During the Fabulous Fifties by Charles R. Furden and Thayne Whiting (editor)
Thousands of aspiring young airmen lived an adventure while learning to fly from the little dirt airfields that once dotted the country. Furden tells his story of working at the Utah Central airport beginning when he was in his teens.
Wings: A History of Aviation from Kites to the Space Age by Tom D. Crouch
Account by senior aeronautics curator at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum traces the air flight evolution from balloons and gliders to jetliners and stealth bombers highlighting memorable engineers, scientists, industrialists, and aviators who pioneered the field.
Come Fly the World: The Jet-Age Story of the Women of Pan Am by Julia Cooke
The author explores the social impact of the rise of commercial flight, particularly Pan Am World Airways. Focuses on the opportunities that Pan Am provided for many young women.
Women of the Air by Judy Lomax
Lomax profiles forgotten women in aviation history, such as Bessie Coleman, the first black woman to gain her pilot’s license; Helen Richey, America’s first female commercial pilot; and the Stinson sisters, stunt pilots and flight instructors.
Image Description: A red 3D paper model bi-plane flies through a blue sky filled with 3D paper clouds and a few paper towering mountain peaks. A bright yellow paper sun floats above it all. The plane leaves a trial of 3D cut out hearts like a trial of smoke.