Wings: A Novel of World War II Flygirls [Hardcover]

Based on the true World War II stories of America's first female military pilots, this historic novel follows the story of a young woman from a dirt-poor farm family. Sally Ketchum has little chance of bettering her life until a mysterious barnstormer named Tex teaches her to fly and to dare to love. But when Tex dies in a freak accident, Sally must make her own way in the world. She enrolls in the U.S. military's Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) program at a special school known as Avenger, where she learns to fly the biggest, fastest, meanest planes. She also reluctantly becomes involved with Beau Bayard, a flight instructor and aspiring writer who seems to offer her everything she could want. Despite her obvious mastery of flying, many members of the military are unable to accept that a “skirt” has any place in a cockpit. Soon Sally finds herself struggling against a high-powered Washington lawyer that wants to close down Avenger once and for all.Karl Friedrich has worked as a newspaper reporter, a magazine and public relations writer, an advertising copywriter, and a photographer, among a variety of other things. He lives in Camas, Washington.Friedrich merges an often-neglected part of U.S. aviation history with a page-turning plot in his commendable debut . . . rich historical details add zest . . . an entertaining and spirited saga.Shocking . . . disturbing . . . insightful . . . a welcome addition to the historical novels depicting the marginalized position of women during America's wars.