My fascination (or should I say obsession?) with the Bell P-39 and the air war in New Guinea in WWII is fueled by the pages of Edward Park's "Nannette."
Park's likening of his tour of duty as a P-39 pilot to an affair with a strumpet named Nanette is a can't put down read for any aviation buff.
While short on historical details such as dates and statistics, the human drama and personal feelings of a pilot and his squadron mates come alive much as Nanette did for Parks. Life, death, and reason for being are examined through the eyes of a reluctant combatant and pilot.
My favorite all time aviation book.

"Nanette- Her Pilot's Love Story" is distinguished from many WWII pilot memoirs by the superb writing of Edwards Park. His vivid, often wry prose truly takes you into the world of the WWII fighter pilot in the Pacific as he focuses not only on the heroic but also the mundane, the frightening and, sometimes, the downright unpleasant.

But for all its worth as a detailed glimpse of the pilots' war, the real story here is the growing love of a young pilot for his first fighter aircraft. "Nanette", a P-39 Airacobra, is nondescript, skittish, often dangerous- and enlessly fascinating to her pilot. Anyone who has ever formed a bond with a machine which, inexplicably, transceded flesh and metal will find this book a superb read.

As an avid reader of WWII fighter pilot first-hand accounts, especially from the Pacific Theatre, this is one of the very best available. Edward is concise, a powerful wordsmith, and you will be hooked after reading just the Introduction (one-third page) and the first couple pages of the first paragraph. He was the typical WWII Army Aviation cadet, and fell in love with his Bell P-39 Aircobra. He starts, "Nanette was an airplane. That should be made clear right at the start. She was not a very good plane; actually she stank. But she did a lot for me, I realize, as I look back on her. All the planes of that old war had distinguishing looks and personalities. The P-40, the Warhawk, was knobby and arrogant, a tomboy. The P-38, the Lightning, was lean and coltish, a rich debunte. The P-47, the Thunderbolt, was massive and dull, a peasnat girl. The bombers had their distinctions, too, but I didn't know much about them. Of all the fighters, two could really excite a flyer. One was the P-51, Mustang, lovely to look at, honest, efficient, hardworking and dependable. In those days she was thought of as a wife, and I know men who married her, back then, and are still inlove with her. The other was the P-39, the Aircobra. It was slim, with a gently curved tail section, a smoothly faired in air intake, and a perfectly rounded nose cone with its ugly, protruding cannon. But the Aircobra was lazy and slovenly and given to fits of vicious temper. It was a sexy machine, and rotten. Nanette was like that, and I was a little queer for her." You can find a lot of books by fighter pilots, but you won't find many better to read than this one.

I laughed, I cried; two thumbs up! A science-based book, complete with citations of all the current literature, coupled with a readable, flowing style of writing. An important repository of all the scientific knowledge of these species in this region and issues affecting them (e.g., fire, climate change), yet engaging even to younger amateur herpetologists. Or, of interest to anyone who simply loves Yellowstone and the Tetons.

If you are into Nostalgia/amusement parks, then this one is a must. It is out of print for sometime, with the limited edition only having 500 copies. The book goes into detail about the park and the family who built/owned it. Lots of interesting pics and one gets a healthy dose of what it was like to be a child growing up in Cleveland, Ohio. Book is factual and a lot of fun,even if you have never been there. The information in the book is invaluable as well as historically correct. The authors went to a great deal of trouble to authenticate and validate their findings. The book is fun as well for children to follow an adult through as the pictures of rides and scenery are incerdible. It also tugs at your heart strings because it is hard to look at something so wonderful and see all the joy it brought to that community, and realize that NOBODY will ever enjoy a sunny day at EUCLID BEACH PARK again. Great reading for anyone.

What a job this guy has! He gets to ride around in the Black Hills with a bunch of college professors (I had to pay tuition to hang out with them) and then write what happened. I found the search for the last fossil cycad with Mark Gable particularly fascinating, as well as the study of plants with Audrey Gable (I think she gets off on microspores). The best thing about this book is that Ed has the ability to translate the near-latin-speak of the scientist to plain Kings' English so it actually makes sense. Great Book!!!

I truly enjoyed the pristine and perceptive photography combined with the accompanying narrative. This is a work of substance and a good companion for one planning a visit to this location. If one cannot visit in person, I highly recommend visiting via this outstanding publication. Mr. Raventon and Mr. Horsted are to be commended for their contribution to capturing this piece of the natural history of this fascinating area.

While "Palisades Amusement Park" might not be a book everyone would enjoy, it meant a great deal to me. I grew up in New Jersey, where this park was located and went there often as a child. The bus company where my Dad was employed provided free passes, which encouraged us to go. When it was destroyed, to erect a condo, my heart was broken, as I knew my daughter and grandchildren would never know the excitement I felt when I first rode the Cyclone at Palisades Park. Through this book, I was able to share some of my experiences with them. Even my son-in-law, who grew up in Georgia, enjoyed it, as history is one of his interests. If you are into historic sites or ever went to Palisades Park when you were young, I think this is a wonderful trip into the past.

ITS GREAT. BROUGHT BACK ALOT OF MEMORIES.DIDNT CARE FOR CONEY ISLAND THO. TOO MANY PICTURES AND THAT ALL IT WAS

This book was absolutely fantastic. I was 10 years old when Palisades park closed. I had vague reminiscences tucked away in the recesses of my mind of the many times I'd visited the park with my parents and grandparents. This book jogged them all loose in a wonderful cascade of memories. The book was cleverly written and well organized into the various epochs in the parks history. There were many interesting facts given, of which I was previously unaware. The book had a generous assortment of vintage photographs. My only wish (and this is no criticism of the book or author) was that the older pictures could have had better clarity, as I found myself desperately trying to get into the "way-back machine." Understandably, these were old, vintage photos and some graniness was therefore unavoidable. But I found myself clinging to each photo as memories would unfold. There was a nice set of color photos also included which were very vivid. I wish there could have been even more. My overall impression is that anyone who was ever lucky enough to have passed through the gates of this great american park will cherish this book.It was worth 100 times the amount I purchased it. I bought another copy for my mother. This is a book that anyone would love. Mr. Gargiulo; Thank you so much!

Alex "Skinnybones" Frankovitch is a memerable character from one of my favorite books as a young adult. Barbra Park delivers a story about a young boy who feels out of place and uses humor as a defense. This book still makes me laugh out loud, and I think children of all ages can relate to Alex because he is the underdog that always see to get himself into some kind of trouble. I am studying to be an elementary teacher and I planning on reading this book to my class because I know I will enjoy it as much as they will!

My 7 yr old son and I started reading this book as a bedtime story and couldn't stop. We went through half the book the first night. Alex Frankovitch is hilarious. We laughed so hard, we cried - especially at the kitty fritters story and just wait until you read the story about the leprechaun. Lucky Charms is our new favorite cereal thanks to this book. We can't see a box without laughing. This is one of those stories you want to keep reading. It's all I can do not to read it without him but I know it will ruin the laughter it brings from both of us.

Skinnybones was a very good book. If you like comedy then you should read this book. When Alex gets challenged to a pitching contest he loses and doesn't like it. Then Alex wins a kitty fritters contest and gets put on t.v. Then the kid he played in the contest gets put in the world record book. Read this book when you get the chance to you'll love it.

No one paints aviation sunsets like this man! Classic aircraft, biplanes, WW II fighters all the way to rocket planes. A great collection from the same artist who brought you the July '97 classic aircraft postage stamp collection. Bill Phillips' work is entertaining for the aviation enthusiast/perfectionist, as well as being satisfying fine art. Painting is his calling and he is faithful with his gift. The text stops short of explaining some of the most significant, and encouraging, aspects of Bill's biography.Closely examine his signature and you'll discover the driving force that sustains Bill and his work. This is a wonderful book that would have rated a 10 if the art was not split across the page gutters. As is the price is right, but I'd gladly have paid another $20 to have a larger book with the images on one page. It violates every user-friendly layout rule of coffee table art books- but this is NOT the fault of the artist! Don't get me wrong, I'm still happy to have this book. But it could have been even better. J. Campbell Martin

Edward Parks has done a masterful job of interpreting the art of Bill Phillips. Mr. Parks was a fighter pilot (P-39's) in New Guinea at the start of WWII and after the war became a nationally recognized writer for the National Geographic and later, for the Smithsonian Institute. His first hand knowledge of flying combined with an incredible gift for prose makes "The Glory of Flight" a perfect match between artist and writer. Bill Phillips is undoubtedly America's premier aviation artist. His ability to capture the experience of seeing the world from aloft is truly inspiring. "The Glory of Flight" is a must for any aviation enthusiast. The title says it all!

Bill Phillips is a superb landscape artist who captures aircraft in moments of aviation history on the richest backgrounds imaginable. I was priviledged to attend his showing of major works in the National Air & Space Museum in September, 1987; and have been an avid collector since

Be sure you get the 1995 revised edition of this book. I received the original 1984 edition, and it is heavy on text and light on route maps and photos. Many of the peaks and routes have no supporting photos. I suspect the 1995 revision has corrected this. Climbing guidebooks need to be visual.

This guide covers most of the peaks in the park. Many of the mountains not covered here are at least mentioned and Edwards proclaims the apparent ease of these climbs. My experience agrees with this surmission. I have been on the mountains of the park with, and without the guide. When the guide was in possession, the climb was greatly simplified. Well done and a must for those interested in climbing mountains in Glacier National Park!

The story of air warfare and fighter aircraft is almost as old as aviation itself. When war came shortly after the Wright brothers' first flight, it didn't take long for militaries to recognize the uses (though not imediately offensive) of the airplane. This book goes back to those early, clumsy beginnings, tracing the history of dogfighting from the Red Baron until Desert Storm, with stops in Britain (as in "Battle of"), Korea and Vietnam. This is more of a coffee table book, and few aviation buffs will find anything that new. An historical survey of fighter aircraft is a bit ambitious for a single book, even as slim as this one. But the pictures are excellent, and the reading, if light, is engaging. The author also remains close to the humans who drive these killer machines - from brooding Frank Luke and the cold-blooded Richtoven to the WWII aces turned jet-age wing commanders like Robin Olds. The author wisely breaks down the periods rather than consolidate them, and also has separate chapters for each nation. It's in WWI chapters that the author shines - his tales of the early aces give those pioneer warriors the attention that usually goes to pilots of Mustangs, Sabrejets and Fulcrums. The technology was barely existent to get planes in the air, let alone coordinate them (no radar or wireless radio was available; even in the next war, Russian pilots preferred their slow and unmaneauverable lend-lease P-39 fighters over faster and more agile Yaks, because the American planes came with radio), and even tactics weren't rigidly enforced (German ace Boelke warned his sqaudronmates against letting more than one plane attack an enemy, since in the fray, the two wingmen might collide - a fear that turned true when Boelke collided with a fellow Albatross while he and the wingmen concentrated on a single enemy plane). Even when air superiority was achieved, the weak technology of the age gave this little meaning - the British had air superiority over the Somme, yet still lost in one day more men than America lost in a decade in Vietnam. Unfortunately, the story thins out after WWI, and the author feels comfortable enough to rely on the same material aviation fans have seen in countless forgettable discovery-channel documentaries. Although the pictures are great, the author runs out of stories to in them to. Nevertheless, the pictures are still enough reason for your resident flyin fool to appreciate.