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A review by mat_tobin
Skyward: The Story of Female Pilots in WWII by Sally Deng
4.0
A wonderful book by Sally Deng in which she presents a brief overview of the lives of three women who dreamed of becoming pilots in a time when such dreams were considered futile. Based on the lives of three real women from England, Russia and the States, Deng chapters their lives with the book starting with exploring the spark that brought them to wanting to fly, the introduction of war, their recruitment, their time during the war and what happened after too. Although each story and woman's life is touched upon briefly, there is enough here to engage and interest any reader and I was also fascinated by the other women pilots who these girls encountered too.
Two aspects of the book, in terms of narrative, caught my attention. The first was how well Deng handles the conflict over the the rights of women to fly. This book does not demonise men at all (two of the girls being fully supported by either their father or their brother) but it does illustrate the closed thinking of a masculine world illustrating how difficult it was for women in this role to be taken seriously - if there was ever a fitting moment as to the derogatory nature of wolf-whistling then it is here in this book. In addition, Deng does much of this implicitly, leaving her commentary within the narrative rather than capitalising on it and keeping it central. For me, the message then is far more powerful.
Finally, there are the illustrations themselves which consistent of beautiful penciled drawings. Some of double-page full bleeds and others offer snapshots into the day-to-day life of the three women. Deng has a real eye of marking moments in the women's lives and bringing the sense of majesty that must come from flying. All in all, thoroughly enjoyable, informative and one which celebrates the persistence of women to consistently fight against those masculine barriers.
Two aspects of the book, in terms of narrative, caught my attention. The first was how well Deng handles the conflict over the the rights of women to fly. This book does not demonise men at all (two of the girls being fully supported by either their father or their brother) but it does illustrate the closed thinking of a masculine world illustrating how difficult it was for women in this role to be taken seriously - if there was ever a fitting moment as to the derogatory nature of wolf-whistling then it is here in this book. In addition, Deng does much of this implicitly, leaving her commentary within the narrative rather than capitalising on it and keeping it central. For me, the message then is far more powerful.
Finally, there are the illustrations themselves which consistent of beautiful penciled drawings. Some of double-page full bleeds and others offer snapshots into the day-to-day life of the three women. Deng has a real eye of marking moments in the women's lives and bringing the sense of majesty that must come from flying. All in all, thoroughly enjoyable, informative and one which celebrates the persistence of women to consistently fight against those masculine barriers.