The memoir intricately details the dual fronts upon which Reid Allin battles and perseveres: the public front replete with prejudice, obstruction, and hostility by male colleagues and the private front mired with loneliness, bullying and abuse. Reid Allin vividly paints the Canada of the 1960s and 1970s, where cigarettes were advertised as harmless, flying was considered a man’s domain, and she grew up loving the TV adventures of Sky King and his aviator niece, Penny. Her interest in flying from an early age is communicated with power through her allegory of clouds while describing everything from her father’s mood to the uncertainty of the future.
The excitement and terror of flight training prove thrilling in her telling, while the technical details and vivid flight descriptions anchor the story, heightening the tension with moments such as, "the altimeter indicates 3,000 feet between us, terra firma, and death.” Further, the intrusive questions in her head (spread across chapters in italics) force the readers to understand the hurdles pioneering women face. The book is an inspiring tale that will resonate with anyone encountering obstacles in life or needing a nudge to pursue their dreams.
Takeaway: Inspiring memoir of a woman pilot blazing her own path.
Comparable Titles: Tammie Jo Shults’s Nerves of Steel, Niloofar Rahmani’s Open Skies.
Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
