Scan barcode
booksnooksandcooks's review
3.5
I felt like this was less about what the women actually did and more about the politics around them. I wish there had been more emphasis on ferrying and what other roles they played.
literarylifter89's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
5.0
kcdigangi2112's review
Fascinating untold story of American heroes who didn’t get the respect and acknowledgment they deserved. Will revisit later when I can spend more time on the stories.
judelon's review
3.0
It was very informative, but I would have preferred more stories about flying and day-to-day operations and adventures. The political infighting between Love and Cochrane was too much a part of the story for my taste. I found a previous book much more moving: Women Pilots of World War II, by Jean Hascall Cole, one of the original WASPs at Sweetwater. Because it was an earlier book, there were more personal stories from living WASPs.
theabhorsen's review
3.0
I enjoyed a lot about this book and I'm not sorry I took the time to read it; it was a really interesting look at the experiences of the WASPs during the war as well as a nice background on how each of the women whose personal stories were focused on ended up in the program as well as their experiences of the program itself. The dissection of some of the behind-the-scenes tension was also fascinating and definitely not something I'd been aware of going into it.
That said, this isn't my favorite book about women service during World War II. I do absolutely agree that the program ending and the WASPs' experiences after the war ended were important to include, but they ended up being the last third-ish of the book. For me, that was too much, and a lot of those chapters also dragged a little - I would have much preferred to have more focus on their actual time in the program and the post-program information communicated more succinctly.
In addition, while I was glad that racism and anti-semitism within the WASP program was acknowledged, it felt like it was really downplayed in favor of focusing on the white Christian women's experiences of sexism. For example, she drops a line about Jewish women in the program not liking the way they were expected to engage with Christianity to prove that the WASPs were respectable, but then moves on as though that isn't part of the pilots' stories, too. I would have preferred to see detail about experiences like that than the repeated play-by-plays of failed legislation later on the book.
Overall, it's interesting and was worth reading, but it also had some significant shortcomings and I'm not sure I'd recommend it.
That said, this isn't my favorite book about women service during World War II. I do absolutely agree that the program ending and the WASPs' experiences after the war ended were important to include, but they ended up being the last third-ish of the book. For me, that was too much, and a lot of those chapters also dragged a little - I would have much preferred to have more focus on their actual time in the program and the post-program information communicated more succinctly.
In addition, while I was glad that racism and anti-semitism within the WASP program was acknowledged, it felt like it was really downplayed in favor of focusing on the white Christian women's experiences of sexism. For example, she drops a line about Jewish women in the program not liking the way they were expected to engage with Christianity to prove that the WASPs were respectable, but then moves on as though that isn't part of the pilots' stories, too. I would have preferred to see detail about experiences like that than the repeated play-by-plays of failed legislation later on the book.
Overall, it's interesting and was worth reading, but it also had some significant shortcomings and I'm not sure I'd recommend it.
picklespost's review
5.0
This history needs to be taught in every class. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve been inspired to figure out how I can learn to fly...
ngreader's review
4.0
4.5 stars
I am LIVING for this book. It took me a WHILE to read but I learned so much about this amazing group of women and I'm so glad I stuck with this book. Great book - not just to learn about WWII female pilots, but also to learn more about aviation and policies in general. Landdecck clearly took time to research this and it clearly holds a close place in her heart, while still being well-researched and well-written.
I am LIVING for this book. It took me a WHILE to read but I learned so much about this amazing group of women and I'm so glad I stuck with this book. Great book - not just to learn about WWII female pilots, but also to learn more about aviation and policies in general. Landdecck clearly took time to research this and it clearly holds a close place in her heart, while still being well-researched and well-written.