The Flying Circus
By: Susan Crandall
Rating: 5 of 5
“The Flying Circus” is the first book I have read by Susan Crandall but I will certainly be going back and reading some of her earlier works. While the story deal with many serious issues, I came away from the book with a feel-good vibe.
The story is set in the 1920’s just prior to the beginning of the Great Depression. There is actually reference to the Florida land-grab, which some have seen as something that helped lead to the drop in the stock market.
In the story, Henry Schuler is fleeing a criminal accusation when he meets up with Cora Rose Haviland and Gil (Charles Gilchrist). As it turns out, they are all trying to leave their past behind them and they end up teaming up to barnstorm small towns. Cora has a rich girl past and is constantly trying to push the limits of what they do; Henry is a natural born promoter and wants to raise as much money as they can by doing safe stunts; Gil, the real aviator, just wants to get by without and hide from his own past.
The story is told from Henry’s perspective, so we get to know him very well. We see Cora and Gil through his eyes and learn how to care for them as he does. Cora is a dare-devil and is constantly pushing the limits of her physical constraints as well as the limits of Henry’s patience. Gil is a man who has been broken by his past and Henry wants to somehow fix him. Henry is a mechanic at heart, so maybe it is this part of him that feels he can put broken pieces back together again.
What was a little more fun for me than others, was a reference in the book to Clover Field in Santa Monica and the Douglas Aircraft company. I lived next to this area for a number of years – in a very old house. I ended up doing searches of the area and found my old house in quite a number of very old photographs of the area. My personal thanks to the author for reminding me of my time there. Her research was very well done.
I enjoyed the book and recommend it wholeheartedly to anyone who enjoys reading a slice of life story and/or who enjoys reading about this time in history.
I received a complimentary copy of this book via the publisher.
“The Flying Circus” is the first book I have read by Susan Crandall but I will certainly be going back and reading some of her earlier works. While the story deal with many serious issues, I came away from the book with a feel-good vibe.