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Reach for the Sky: The Story of Douglas Bader, Legless Ace of the Battle of Britian
 
 
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Reach for the Sky: The Story of Douglas Bader, Legless Ace of the Battle of Britian [Paperback]

Paul Brickhill (Author)
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)

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Book Description

Douglas Bader was a legend in his lifetime. After losing both legs in an air crash in 1931 and being dismissed as a cripple by the Royal Air Force, he fought his way back into the cockpit of a Spitfire to become one of the great heroes of the Battle of Britain. This inspiring biography of the famous World War II fighter pilot, first published in 1954, has a following of faithful readers who come back to the book time and again to re-read, share with their children and pass along to friends. Not many books have made such an impact on people's lives. Bader's story is so extraordinary that no one would dare invent it, and Brickhill succeeds in matching the excitement of Bader's war deeds with the triumph of his greater battle over a severe handicap. Told he would never walk without a cane, Bader learned to dance, swim, golf, and play tennis. Told he would never fly again, he became not only one of the RAF's top combat pilots but a squadron leader and innovator of fighter tactics that helped win the Battle of Britain. Among the thrilling incidents chronicled in the book are Bader's first successful encounter with an enemy plane, his own shoot down, and his succession of escapes from German prisons.

About the Author

Paul Brickhill, a RAF pilot himself, wrote The Great Escape, which was made into a popular movie, and The Dam Busters, among other books.
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First Sentence
WHEN DOUGLAS BADER was nineteen, his flying instructor said, "That young man will either be famous or be killed." Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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3 Reviews
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5.0 out of 5 stars (3 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutley Amazing!, Feb 24 2002
By 
Iona (Australia) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Reach for the Sky: The Story of Douglas Bader, Legless Ace of the Battle of Britian (Paperback)
People would wonder as why, me, as a girl of 15 would be reading a book about War. I love reading the war stories, and watching the war films as much as i love reading and watching horse things. Although I have a planned career in the Olympics with my horse, i've thought in the past few years, that if i weren't intersted in horses, i would go into the Air Force. My brother is obsessed with World War II, and I must admit it grew on me! Douglas Bader is an amazing man, with great courage and determination. Paul Brickhill wrote Reach for the Sky really well. Some of my favourite parts are (from the 1954 book)

"242 Squadron were changing their aeroplanes, becoming the second squadron to get Hurricane Mark II's, which were faster, had more power, and the new and better VHF raido. Now in the routine of unexiting readiness, Bader sometimes swashbuckled about, jabbing his thumb nosalgically on an imaginary gun button, with an accompanying 'rasberry' to signify the rattling guns" I just found that hilarious.

Another of my favourites is:
"Once in mid- Channel on the way out a new boy in 145 called: 'Hallo, Red Leader. Yellow Two calling. I can't turn my oxygen on.' A brooding silence followed, The voice plaintivley again: 'Hallo, Red Leader. Can you hear me? I can't turn on my oxygen."
Then Turner's Canadian voice, ferociously sarcastic: "What the hell d'you want me to do? Get out and turn it on for you? Go home!' No one made that mistake again."
You have to feel sorry for the boy, but Turner was funny!

Douglas Bader was someone who will never give up. He'll just keep on trying, and trying, and trying, until he gets it. He's a man of great wisdom, and should be greatly remembered through out history.

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5.0 out of 5 stars One of the great WWII stories, Dec 9 2001
By 
Daniel Ford (at danford dot net) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Reach for the Sky: The Story of Douglas Bader, Legless Ace of the Battle of Britian (Paperback)
Douglas Bader was in the peacetime RAF but lost both legs in a crash. After a miserable few years on civvie street, the war came along and he volunteered. Not only was he accepted, with two prosthetic legs and several years older than most of "the Few", but the RAF returned him to fighter-plane duty. He became a leading ace until he was shot down, and then he became such a pain to the Germans that they had to take his legs away from him to stop him from escaping.

You may remember Brickhill as the author of The Great Escape. This is another spellbinding yarn. Note however that it is more of an inspirational story than a serious biography. In the days when youngsters were more literate than they are today, it would have been called a "boy's book."

My son-in-law (who is English) gave an earlier version of this book to me for a Christmas present. He had to search all the used-book websites to find it. I'm delighted (and so is he) that it's available again. Bluejacket Books are distributed in the U.S. by Naval Institute Press, so I'm sure that this is an excellent production and not a cheap reprint.

Give it to the "boy" on your list, whether he's eight or eighty.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Most inspiring read...., Dec 6 2003
By 
L. Cameron (Oklahoma USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Reach for the Sky: The Story of Douglas Bader, Legless Ace of the Battle of Britian (Paperback)
It's been 17 years since I first read this book and, just as I'm on the verge of a family myself, it's damned good to see it reprinted. There's nothing about this book I wouldn't recommend. Without glorifying war itself, the true story of this WWII ace truly captures the will and tenacity of men whose nations are in conflict.
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