Seven Favorites (AFW Nov/Dec 2022)
by Liz Booker
This article was published in the November/December 2022 issue of Aviation for Women Magazine.
In my two years as ‘Literary Aviatrix’ I have interviewed 40 authors for the Aviatrix Book Review [now Literary Aviatrix] website, YouTube channel, and podcast, where I promote authors and books that feature women in aviation and offer aspiring authors the encouragement and tools to tell their stories. In each of these interviews, I’ve learned about our collective history and the diverse experiences and opportunities in aviation, as well as about writing and publishing. Before looking forward to another great year of Aviatrix Book Club discussions and interviews, I took a moment to look back to share some of the favorites I haven’t had a chance to highlight this year.
Robin Kardon, writing as R.D. Kardon, talks in our interview about why she wove her experience as the first woman working for a corporate aviation company into the fictional Flygirl series featuring protagonist Tris Miles. Kardon tackles tough issues like discrimination and harassment in Flygirl, women’s physical and mental health in aviation in Angel Flight, and diversity issues around race and sexuality against the backdrop of the 9/11 aftermath in her upcoming Flying Home, due for release in February 2023.
Former Air Force and retired airline pilot Patty Bear reveals how her book, From Plain to Plane: My Mennonite Childhood, A National Scandal, and an Unconventional Soar to Freedom, was an accountability project to set the record straight about her extraordinary experience as a girl raised in a culture of oppression and silence. Patty finds her voice and truly soars into a world where she is no longer the victim of anyone else’s narrative.
Journalist and pilot Kathy Mexted sat in an Australian Women Pilots Association presentation where Pat Toole told her white-knuckle adventures flying in New Guinea in the 1940’s. Pat’s story inspired a collection of ten fascinating biographies of women aviation pioneers throughout the last century in Australian Women Pilots: True Stories of Women in the Air.
Renaissance woman Erin Seideman hints at some of the juicy details she didn’t include in her General Aviation travelogue/tell-all Postcards from the Sky. As an aircraft owner who earned every cent to fund her aviation journey, she offers advice to aspiring plane owners, and talks about the adventure of flying solo around the Caribbean.
Kid’s STEM author Ann McCallum Staats was so excited to see a female airline pilot she knew she had to write a book about it. The result is a diverse collection of biographies in High Flyers: 15 Inspiring Women Aviators and Astronauts. (Ages 12-18)
Amelia Earhart was one of author Kristin L. Gray’s childhood heroes, and a visit to Earhart’s childhood home in Atchison, Kansas inspired the novel The Amelia Six: An Amelia Earhart Mystery, in which a fun cast of quirky STEM-geek characters goes on a midnight hunt for Earhart’s missing goggles. (Ages 8-12)
Picture book author Meghan P. Browne aspired to be a pilot as a child. Tired of doing school projects on Amelia Earhart, she was encouraged to interview her Women Airforce Service Pilot neighbor. Two decades later, that eighth-grade report became a beautiful tribute to Dorothy Lucas and all the women who served during WWII in Dorothy the Brave. (Ages 4-8)
You can listen to all the interviews and find these and hundreds of other books featuring women in aviation on the Aviatrix Book Review website. While you’re there, sign up for the monthly Literary Aviatrix newsletter and stay up to date on Aviatrix Book Club discussion books, dates, and times, new releases, and author events. Wishing you all a new year of blue skies and happy reading!
