This is the second book I ever read as a child, and it's a bragging right.
There are some really good 'I-was-there-history' books.
I've classified them into two types- their living room books and bar
books. For the latter, you feel like the last couple hours you spent
reading the book, you were actually sitting at a bar with the author
as he accurately, yet entertainingly regailed you with his tales. The
former is when you feel like you spent the last couple hours in the
comfort of the author's living room as he calmly told you said tales,
his wife occasionally bringing a cup of cocoa or some chips. I'm not
going to explain the difference any more than that. If that doesn't
convey it, just try again later.
Thud Ridge is the latter. Its a comfortable read, yet
you still get enraged at the stupid politics and rules of engagement
(ROE) pilots had to deal with as they struggled to fight effectively
despite them. You learn about the fragile, pink human beings that
climbed into those cockpits and flew those missions- how they felt,
how they dealt with it, or how they didn't deal with it. But the
bombing scenes, and even the dog-fighting scenes are amazing. Still,
it's a story about professionalism, but these men are no gods in
zipper suits- they sound like they could be yard workers, oil
drillers, anything. They're only as tough as the job demands, and just
enough of that to get them home and on with their lives. The ending
is real, sudden, and punches the back of your neck through your gut.
And it's all real.
Action-packed, detailed, educational, and gritty. And
if you don't have this one in your library, go fly a Cessna 150 until
you get bored, because this is an amazing book.
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