Ernest Gann’s Flying Circus

the long version

The author of The High and the Mighty surveys the seat-of-the-pants flying scene of the '30's and reminisces about the early days of air mail, cargo transports and the first passenger lines. There's a lot less of the controlled hysteria of Richard Bach's A Gift of Wings (KR, p. 655) but just as much passion in Gann's nostalgic recall. The book features eighteen paintings by Richard Parks of old planes -- which accounts for the steep price. Gann strives for general interest as well as to hook aviation buffs, and spools out the John Wayne manliness with modest enthusiasm. The principal characters really are the crafts, but there are also many mute, inglorious airmen who strongly captured Gann's heart. Among these is one of Gann's earliest employers, who ran a tiny flight school and air circus -- until he failed to pull out of a spin during a Sunday afternoon show and became Gann's very first friend lost to the sky. Fortunately, the technical descriptions do not overburden the text. Gann seldom allows the sense of privileged adventure to fade even for a sentence.