Searching for a good read...

[Wander00]

Just re-reading Anthony Furze's biography of ACM Sir Wilfred Freeman. It was Freeman who gave the RAF the Mosquito and the Merlin engined Mustang (which the USAAF also had), amongst others. He is little known, but clearly were it not for his having been divorced he might well have been CAS rather than Portal, and that would have been an interesting ride. It is a very detailed book, and not a quick read but IMHO well worth the effort.

[cessnaxpilot]

Not to revive an old thread, but I was looking for a good read and ended up here. After spending $100 on books by page 2 of the thread, I stopped!

i just finished a friends copy on “Behind the Cockpit Door,” by Arthur Whitlock. What a great read! I wanted to buy my own copy but WOW… not cheap on the used market.

also to add a couple of my favorites:

“skygods, the fall of Pan Am.” By Robert Gandt. He also wrote “China Clipper” which is a good read.

“more than my share of it all” By Kelly Johnson

“North star over my shoulder” by Robert Buck

“A Cargo Pilot's Life- Tails from Corrosion Corner”
Book by Brett Lane

“Flight”
Book by Luann Grosscup and Neil Graham Hansen


Enjoy

[stevef]

Originally Posted by cessnaxpilot

Not to revive an old thread, but I was looking for a good read and ended up here. After spending $100 on books by page 2 of the thread, I stopped!

i just finished a friends copy on “Behind the Cockpit Door,” by Arthur Whitlock. What a great read! I wanted to buy my own copy but WOW… not cheap on the used market.

I'll agree with that! I got my copy in a second-hand bookshop for less than the price of a beer. The author was a pretty good artist too, his drawings really added colour to the words.
I'd recommend Murray Peden's A Thousand Shall Fall, too. A well-written account of a Canadian bomber pilot's journey from cadet to operations. Nearly 500 pages to keep you occupied for a while.

[Jhieminga]

Originally Posted by cessnaxpilot

i just finished a friends copy on “Behind the Cockpit Door,” by Arthur Whitlock. What a great read! I wanted to buy my own copy but WOW… not cheap on the used market.

I can second (third) that recommendation. The book is hard to find for a decent price though.
Have a look at 'Sky Talk' from Philip Hogge, volume 2 is also available:
https://amzn.to/40wTYcr
https://amzn.to/3L06sDS
Phillip did a talk at the Brooklands Museum last week about his career and his stories. They're all short stories based on true events but fictionalised.
Another enjoyable book is 'Flight from the Croft' by Bill Innes (https://amzn.to/3UYsDyP). I think it has been mentioned before.

[treadigraph]

Plus 1 for "Sky Talk" and "Flight from the Croft" and I'll add "A Concorde in my Toybox" by Mike Riley, well worth getting your hands on - two hands needed for it as it's quite a hefty tome!

[safetypee]

'Explaining Humans' Camilla Pang

Although subtitled 'what science can teach us about life, love and relationships', it is an enjoyable read as an insight to 'self' as a CRM, Human Factor, Safety Management primer.

An instruction manual for humans.

Alternative title 'An Outsider's Guide to Humans: What Science Taught Me About What We Do and Who We Are'

[sealo0]

Not to sure if this was on the list. Pure Luck : Biography of Sir Thomas Sopwith 1888 - 1989 I for one was amazed by the number planes from all the companies he was invited with. A very interesting read.

[lederhosen]

The Sopwith biography was a good read. His balloon exploits were interesting as well as his very strained relationship with the powers that be when made the logical decision to close factories at the end of World War one, which explains why he waited so long for a knighthood.

[Stranraer]

selo0,

Thanks for posting Tommy Sopwith's biography. I've bought one from abe.com. There are several cheap hardcovers available - well, one less now!

[sealo0]

I realised yesterday that I seem to have lost my copy , I might get another. Sopwith aircraft company did not last long but it of course became
Hunter.

[BSD]

"Gun Button To Fire" by Tom Neil.

Staggeringly good. His description of shooting down a Messerschmidt (his first confirmed kill) is remarkable.

Ernest Gann's "Island in the Sky" is breathtaking. A novel that grew out of his story (In "Fate is the Hunter") of the C54 lost over Canada which put down on a frozen lake. The aeroplane's flight into impending danger, carburetors icing up, fuel running low, no idea where they are.The airframe icing up and the way he describes the Captain's thought processes and the conclusion he draws as he runs out of options must surely represent some of the finest aviation prose you will ever read. I defy anyone to read that chapter without experiencing the cold chill of icy fear running down your spine as you turn each page. Unbelievable.
In fact anything Gann wrote is worth a read. "Twilight for the Gods" about an obsolete sailing vessel on its last voyage. Magnificent.

[sorvad]

Agree with Behind the Cockpit Door, it’s one of my favourite books and I’m fortunate to have a signed copy by Arthur Whitlock. Tiger Tales by Vern Moldrem …..an anecdotal history of Flying Tigers is absolutely brilliant. Also With my Head in the Clouds by Gwyn Mullett parts 1 and 2 ……a BOAC/BA Captains memoir. The Self-Improver and Still Improving by Nick Eades, again a BA Captains memoirs. Anything by Rick Drury. Of course First Light…..the best Fighter Pilot’s memoir ever written by Geoffrey Wellum. It’s bomber equivalent No Moon Tonight by Don Charlwood which is the best Bomber Crew memoir I’ve ever read. Anything by Don McVicar, particularly Ferry Command and North Atlantic Cat. Where he recalls his time as a Ferry Pilot during the War. And many more.

[OJ 72]

I would echo sorvad's recommendation for 'No Moon Tonight'. When I was the 'Tame Crab' (sic) attached to an Army Brigade HQ, I lent the Brigadier a copy and he said that it was probably the best book about the RAF in WWII that he had ever read.

However, in 1991 Don Charlwood brought out a 'companion piece' if you will to 'No Moon Tonight' entitled 'Journeys Into Night'. This book expands on the experiences recounted in the earlier book, but, more than that, it is a sort of 'gloves off' version of 'No Moon Tonight'. By that I mean when 'No Moon Tonight' was first published in 1956 wartime memories were still raw and Charlwood, necessarily, bowdlerised some of his experiences; he even admitted that some of the names had been altered to protect individual sensitivities. However, by 1991 he believed that the time was right for a full and frank retelling of his wartime 'journey' (pun entirely intentional) hence he re-structured 'No Moon Tonight' and, 'Journeys Into Night' was the result.

I thoroughly recommend both books to anyone with an interest in wartime flying in general, and Bomber Command in particular!

PS... the fact that Don Charlwood was a Navigator in no way influenced my endorsement!! Honest...

[Planemike]

Originally Posted by sealo0

I realised yesterday that I seem to have lost my copy , I might get another. Sopwith aircraft company did not last long but it of course became Hunter.

Hawker.....!! Yes, they did produce an a/c known as the Hunter !!!! 😉😉

[Planemike]

Have s just clocked this on E-bay.....A Time to Fly: The Memoirs of Sir Alan Cobham Does anyone have any comments?
Considering investing £ 3:66 inc postage !!!

[OUAQUKGF Ops]

You can't go wrong with Sir Alan Cobham. A great writer - I've read 'Twenty-thousand Miles in a Flying Boat ' (1930) ' Australia and Back ' (1926) and have yet to take 'My Flight to The Cape and Back' (1926) down from the bookshelf. The last title tends to be expensive.

[Stranraer]

Have s just clocked this on E-bay.....A Time to Fly: The Memoirs of Sir Alan Cobham Does anyone have any comments?
Considering investing £ 3:66 inc postage !!!

Pm,

The only comment I would make is that Ebay is a more risky market place than Advanced Book Exchange (http://abe.com). I've bought many books from the latter over the years and the books have always been as described.

[sorvad]

Abe books are brilliant, I’ve bought many from them, but I think eBay these days are excellent too….lots of protections in place against being mis-sold. I just get them where I can find them…. Rapidly running out of room to keep them however!

[Planemike]

Thank you, to the three of you....!! At £ 3.66 it is a major purchasing/investment decision so cannot afford any slip ups....!!!! 😀😀😀

I have mainly used E-bay and am pleased to say I have hardly had any problems/disappointments. Used ABE a couple of times, now know what it stands for , completes my education.....!! sorvad Much the same here. Should be thinning out collection not adding to it...!!! Cannot resist sometimes..😉😉

[Jhieminga]

I like Abebooks a lot, but as it turns out, it's actually Amazon who owns it. I do hope they don't shut it down as they have done with a number of sites recently.

You can find good deals on a lot of sites, including Ebay.