Winner of the North Texas Book Festival Adult Non-Fiction Award for 2020!

Ok, I am gonna be honest, I never thought I would read a book about the life of an Airline Pilot.  I am not a fan of flying; mind you, I am much better now but still, I am always amazed at those who choose to make a living way up in the sky.  Now I certainly get wanting to fly; being a bird must be phenomenal in many ways but not with tons of steel wrapped around you deifying everything I know about physics.  But back to the book.  I was surprised at just how well done the writing was and how fast I flew through the pages wanting to know more.  

Manno has written a personal memoir that allowed me to understand the desperate desire to fly.  Not just fly but to fly planes of all different sizes and abilities, to want something so much you can not comprehend not achieving it.  He does an incredible job of providing information about each plane and even making it all sound fascinating, even for a person who needs Xanax to get on a plane.  One of the things Manno does to ensure his ability to fly is to join the Airforce and even his experiences there weave a tale of determination and courage.

This is a long book, 450 pages, and there are a couple of times when it seems redundant but it is well worth finishing the book.  Manno manages to achieve so much in his life and at an overall glance, you wonder about the paradoxes found within his life but then again this is what makes the book so interesting.  If you are interested in flying planes you should read this book.  If you wonder how it looks to let nothing stop you from your dreams you definitely should read this book.  If you think you have been knocked down and people are not supporting you in your efforts to achieve, you should read this book.  Actually, I can not think of any good reason to not read this book.