The Kenneth More film is on the box this weekend BBC2, saturday afternoon.
Paul Brickhill's "Reach for the Sky", in a version abridged for younger readers, was my introduction to aviation. Later read the unexpurgated version along with Larry Forrester's "Fly for your Life" which deals with his contemporary Bob Stanford-Tuck. Both were written in the immediate post war glow, and when the full story, warts and all, would have been unacceptable, and probably compromised issues still regarded as militarily sensitive. Similar considerations apply to Pat Reid's accounts of Colditz, he wrote a third volume, warts and all, shortly before his death which IIRC was less than fullsome in its praise of Bader. Goon baiting affecting other's chances off pulling off an escape etc.