A review by bluestarfish
Falling Upwards: How We Took to the Air by Richard Holmes

4.0

The spirit of discovery and the human drama of hot air ballooning enthral in this look at the history and people involved in ballooning. I had no idea about most of it so was fascinated to learn about the first attempts to be airborne, the pioneers of scientific study and the entertainers, the balloons in the Paris siege, trying to reach the North Pole, the daring "mariners of the upper atmosphere"... Richard Holmes is a very entertaining storyteller and chronicler of this period before heavier-than air flight.