I think I need to post this book trail before it gets any longer!

It's 1918, World War I. Pilots are dying not only because they were shot down, but because they got lost, ran out of fuel and crashed. Several ideas merged and it was determined that before they went overseas, pilots would fly for the new U.S. Air Mail Service. This would give them experience in flying using landmarks ... rivers, roads, church steeples, etc. Sounds like a good idea, right? It would have been until the government added a few touches. Many were unreasonable, especially the one that the planes would fly regardless of the weather. Mavericks of the Sky: the First Daring Pilots of the U.S. Air Mail by Barry Rosenberg & Catherine Macaulay was a fascinating read and hard to put down.

When I told Constant Reader about Mavericks of the Sky, I was told about Map of My Dead Pilots, by Colleen Mondor. Flying in Alaska is tough! Planes can be old, cargo is, well, varied (food, mail, appliances, dogs ....), weight limits are pushed, and of course, there's always the weather. Pilots need to have a certain attitude to fly in these conditions. It's a grim subject (just look at the title), but a very interesting read.

While looking for 'Maps' I found First Blue: the Story of World War II Ace Butch Voris and the Creation of the Blue Angels, by Robert K. Wilcox. What a read! From fighting (in the air) in WWII, to the creation of the Blue Angels, to working with NASA, Voris had a most interesting life. Well written and easy to read. :-)

There's a scene at the beginning where a young Voris watches planes being snagged by a zeppelin and pulled into them ... this lead me to Ships of the Air, by Lynn Curlee (who did the illustrations, too). Nicely done, but sadly, just one short paragraph about these zeppelins. (Still worth a read, though).

The desire for more pictures made me look for a coffee table took or a souvenir guide and I found The Blue Angels: a Fly-By History: Sixty Years of Aerial Excellence, by Nicholas A. Veronico. I was pleased to discover a well written text with the photos, some of which was familiar from First Blue.

When Tall Reader saw me reading First Blue, she told me of a book she'd heard about involving a Pan Am Clipper and the bombing of Pearl Harbor. From what she told me I was able to track down The Long Way Home (Revised Edition): a Journey Into History With Captain Robert Ford, by Ed Dover. It started as a routine (well, almost ... for some time pilots had been handed a sealed envelope marked "Top Secret" to be opened only if necessary but otherwise returned unopened) flight to Hawaii and ended up being far from routine. The orders were opened and the crew was instructed to bring the plane back to the U.S. ... but to the east coast rather than the west. This meant flying around the world, without maps, and under radio silence. It was an amazing journey.

Reading Hermit With Dog