Listen! The Wind - Anne Morrow Lindberg

This is the first-person account of the Lindbergh's flight in 1933 across the southern Atlantic Ocean from Bathurst (now called Banjul), Gambia on the western shoe of Africa to Natal, Brazil in South America in 18 hours.  It was one leg in a series of trans-oceanic trips taken to explore the various routes.  It's quite short and the bulk of the story is their preparation and false starts before leaving from Africa.  I appreciated how Anne was treated as an equal partner, even flying the plane for part of the trip.  Her musings on waiting and disappointment when they couldn't leave from the Cape Verde Islands are like being in her head as she reconciles her feelings and regains her optimism. 

This volume was privately published as a book of the year by a small publisher, Westvaco in 1990.  There is a lengthily explanation of the typeface, front pieces, and end papers styled to reflect the Art Deco period of the 1930's and has its own case.  A joy to read and admire.

Published: 1990 (this edition, originally 1938) Read: July 2018  Genre: Non-fiction

Leaving Earth - Helen Humphreys

This is a fictionalized account of a real event where two women, one a well-known aviator, the other a newcomer brought in at the last minute, establish a flight endurance record by circling a coastal town for twenty-five days.

It was a short book and fascinating to read the details of surviving with in-air refueling and meager food supplies, cold, wet clothes, boredom and lack of regular sleep.  The story revolves around the younger woman's awe at the experienced pilot and their coming to respect each other's talents and all too human shared experiences.


Published:  1997     Read:  October 2016  Genre: Historical fiction

The Aviator's Wife - Melanie Benjamin

This is an historical fiction account of Ann Morrow Lindberg, the wife of Charles Lindberg who was the first to cross the Atlantic solo.  I didn't enjoy this book at first.  I was frustrated at the passivity of Ann and her acceptance of whatever she was told to do.  Later in the book I realized this set the stage for her futuer growth as a person with her own ideas and desires.  I was familiar with Lindberg's Nazi admiration but was not aware he had fathered other children with three other women in Germany.

It was sad and disturbing to see how celebrity and public life is so destructive and disruptive to the individual and their family.  A good read.


Published: 2013  Read: August 2016  Genre: Historical fiction