Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Brotherhood of the Flying Coffin:
There is no damn way you’d get me in one of those things.
Quick synopsis:
The story of the American glider pilots of World War II.
Fact for Non-History People:
The U.S. produced 14,612 gliders between 1941 and 1945.
Fact for History Nerds:
General William Westmoreland commented, “…the combat glider, the only aircraft built to crash.”
My Take on Brotherhood of the Flying Coffin:
I don’t think I have ever drunk enough, or lost my mind enough, to the point that I would volunteer to be a World War II glider pilot. I would have said this before I read Scott McGaugh’s amazing Brotherhood of the Flying Coffin. Now that I have read it, I definitely would have volunteered to clean latrines for the rest of my life instead.
What is a glider exactly? Well, think of a paper airplane and then imagine flying that paper airplane into Nazi territory. Is that hyperbole? Not nearly as much as you think.
McGaugh tells the story of these absolutely insane heroes. Don’t worry, I am not being disrespectful. They called themselves much, much worse. If you read a fair amount of World War II literature, you will see references to gliders in all the major airborne battles of Europe. However, this is the first book that I have seen which focuses on gliders and their story. It’s a fantastic book worthy of its subjects.
(This book was provided as a courtesy copy by Osprey Books.)
Verdict:
Read it. Buy it here!
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.