The Flight Girls by Noelle Salazar

Mira, 2019. Paperback, 384 pages.

Opening in 1941 on the lush shores of Oahu, The Flight Girls shows how pioneering some women were in flight before the WASPS (Women’s Air Force Service Pilots) entered service. Audrey Coltrane is in the Hawaiian Islands serving as a female flight instructor for the military. On December 7th, she and another crew were in the air when the Japanese attack came. From that point, Audrey finds herself bound to fellow pilot Lieutenant James Hart even as the war takes them to different parts of the world.

In the year that follows, James is off to war while Audrey returns homes. When the call for women pilots finally arose, Audrey joined the cause and trained as a WASP. Much of the middle part of the novel shows the life in the WASP training program, from daily instruction to new-found friendships to challenges faced. Within this program, Audrey finds hope within the war now that she has a role to play. And her friends are there to support her when James goes missing in action. Then once the novel transitions to Audrey having an active WASP role, readers will see the challenges she faced working in a man’s world and how she overcame.

I was enthralled with this novel. Historical details, strong women, flying, and well-written. What more can I ask for? Readers will follow Audrey’s emotional journey and feel her pain, love, and joy. When she is flying, readers will also learn to love the open sky. And the novel well-addressed the challenges that faced the women in regards to sexsim in the military. In addition, the relationships between Audrey and her friends show the strong ties that bonded the women of the WASPs together. And the ending helped show just how pioneering the women were, especially in the face of adversity.

It seems more are remembering the WASPS and other women pilots of WWII in recent years. Flygirl by Sherri Smith is another good one. Do you have similar titles to recommend? Do you think you’ll read this novel?

Thanks to NetGalley and Mira for the digital advanced reader copy of the novel. The expected release date is July 2, 2019.