The War in the air, 1914-1918. Which are the best books?

[Strutter15]

Hi everyone,
I know that there are plenty of books available of the Air War of 1914-1918, and various books of the squadron's and The Aces and other pilots/observers, but which in the opinion of you knowledge Aerodromers would you recommend? I was reviewing a book that I would liked to have purchased, but more than 1 review stated that there was incorrect captions to the photographs, and that the text was rather questionable. Do you find that if you have read a book of a certain sqn or pilot/ace, that another book would contradict something that was written in the first book that you had read? Which books would you recommend that are accurate and really worth reading? Hoping "I don't tread on anyone's toes" here,
Many thanks, Strutter15

[R Gannon]

Hi

I think the book which is WW1air war's finest, is Alex Revell's High in the Empty Blue - a study of 56 Sqn in WW1. The hard back Flying Machine Press version that is, not the Osprey epitome. It has set the bar very high.

No jingoistic title, no disregarding of facts, so as to perpetuate mythology. And above all else whist it is a history of a British squadron, it is none the lessbalanced in its presentation. And because of this, it will no doubt pass the test of time.

Cheers Russ

[Strutter15]

Many thanks for your reply Russ, I will see if it is available on (eg) Amazon, or if my local book shop can help, as they have a link to some book shop(?)that specialise in out of print books (that is of course if it is indeed an OOP book! Many thanks again, Strutter15

[antares]

Without a doubt, the best WWI air war book I have read is Arthur Gould Lee, No Parachute, an edited collection of his letters and war diary from 1917. The main text is fascinating. The appendices, written 50 years later, I found misinformed.

Others (in no order):
Cecil Lewis, Sagittarius Rising
Manfred Freiherr von Richtofen, Der rote Kampfflieger (German) aka The Red Fighter Pilot (English)
James McConnell, Flying for France
Billy Bishop, Winged Warfare
James McCudden, Flying Fury
Frederick Libby, Horses Don't Fly
Quentin Reynolds, They Fought for the Sky
Peter Hart, Somme Success
Eddie Rickenbacker, Fighting the Flying Circus
Nordhoff and Hall, Falcons of France

Not WWI but a fighting and flying book I highly recommend:
Marshall Harrison, A Lonely Kind of War

Hope this helps. I am certain that others on the Aerodrome know more than I.

[Felix C]

For the British side, the works by Peter Hart.

Overall view John Morrow, Great War in the Air
less intense than Morrow and more readable is Lee Kennett The First Air War

As for your other questions...believe it or not I do not care about photographs or squadron specific books.

[Gregvan]

Hi Strutter15,

It depends on what you're interested in pursuing. I will heartily second Russ' recommendation of High in the Empty Blue, as I have many times on this forum.

There are many, many threads on this topic if you care to do some searching; perhaps as many threads as there are WWI aviation books!!

Greg

[R Gannon]

The book that got me into it was Harleyford's Air Aces of the 1914 - 1918 War (1959) which I received for my 12th birthday back in the late 1960's. It is somewhat out dated now, but provided a good overview of the air forces of all the combatants, short biogs on many aces, and ace lists. It still has pride of place on my bookshelves, and is next to Harleyford's Von Richthofen and the Flying Circus, which I picked up some years later, and it too stands up well, even today, as an account of MvR & JG 1.

JTB McCudden's Five Years in the Royal Flying Corps, is the standout, written by an ace. Extremely detailed and factual, it makes MvR's own book look really second rate (and not a little dubious in regards accuracy). Still worth a read though.

VM Yeate's Winged Victory is the outstanding novel - a thinly disguised account of Yeate's own experiences as a Camel pilot with 46 Sqn during the spring and summer of 1918. After reading it I gave up any pretensions of writing a WW1 air novel, realising it could never be topped.

I think the Grub St corpus also deserves a big nod, Above the Lines, Above the Trenches, The Sky Their Battlefield, etc, as these book really were a quantum leap forward in regards reference books.

Cheers Russ

[Dave_Kent]

Hi:

Something different, not a book about the aur war, rather a book about the books about the air war.

Noffsinger, WORLD WAR 1 AVIATION a Bibliography of books...

It lists hundreds of books, giving a 2 or 3 line summary.

Dave

[Strutter15]

Well, thanks to everyone who replied to this topic, all of your recommendation's have been taken on board, and I look forward to purchasing as many ( if not all), of your recommended books! Many thanks, Strutter15