  | Book Details Title: Race of Aces: WWII’s Elite Airmen and the Epic Battle to Become the Master of the Sky |
Book DescriptionReview “Bruning is at his best when he delves into the pilots’ anguish and obsessions…[his] work is a testament and a memorial not just to a handful of tragic heroes, but to those left bereft by this unique and explosive competition on the other side of the world.”―The New York Times“Race of Aces fascinates because of its attention to detail and strong characterization of these remarkable men.” ―The Wall Street Journal“Race of Aces brings you into the cockpit of the lethal, fast-paced world of fighter pilots as they strive to achieve ace-level status…Bruning’s unique and intimate look at the struggles of these men to balance honor, duty to country, and their pursuit to be the best makes this account even more fascinating. This is a book you can’t put down, and a story you will reflect upon long after turning the last page.”―Sara Vladic, New York Times bestselling coauthor of Indianapolis“Race of Aces is a superb read, taking us through the high-stakes world of our great Aces and the WWII air war…Extraordinary. Wear your G suit and hang on — this must-read will become a classic.”―Dan Pedersen, Founder of the Topgun program and bestselling author of Topgun: An American Story“The riveting and emotional story of five American fighter pilots caught up in a deadly competition to claim the title of our nation’s Ace of Aces, this book is so powerfully written that you can almost smell the engine exhaust and feel the G-forces in those furious dogfights. Race of Aces is quite simply is one of the best books ever written on World War II and cements Bruning’s place as one of our generation’s best combat historians.”―David Bellavia, Medal of Honor Recipient and author of House to House: A Soldier’s Memoir“In Race of Aces, John R. Bruning brilliantly recreates the excitement and terror of one of the greatest untold stories of World War II: the nerve-shredding three-year contest to become America’s deadliest fighter pilot. Exhaustively researched and expertly written — with dogfights as vivid and gripping as any I’ve read — the book confirms Bruning’s status as the premier war historian of the air.”―Saul David, author of The Force and Operation Thunderbolt“A heart-pounding narrative of the courage, sacrifice, and tragedy of America’s elite fighter pilots during World War II. With a cockpit view of the fight, readers will hear the roar of the engines, feel the surge of adrenaline, and wrestle with the exhaustion that gripped these aviators in the marathon battle to become America’s top fighter pilot.”―James M. Scott, Pulitzer Prize finalist and bestselling author of Target Tokyo and Rampage“With deft, grit, and no shying away from the horrifying realities of war, Bruning…brings these heroes back to life, defining the struggles of morality, mortality, and glory that suffused their careers….[R]ich with historical information, Race of Aces reads like a novel and features interactions with figures such as Eddie Rickenbacker and Charles Lindbergh. Bruning’s suspenseful storytelling utilizes personal interviews with U.S. Army Air Forces (USAAF) veterans, oral histories, archives, military history agencies, and letters/diaries written by the aces themselves….Eloquent and finely researched.”―Library Journal (starred review)“Satisfying…Combat aviation buffs will enjoy Bruning’s explorations of a little-known history.”―Kirkus Reviews Read more About the Author John R. Bruning is the author or collaborating writer of the national bestseller, Indestructible, as well as Outlaw Platoon written with Sean Parnell, Shadow of the Sword with Jeremiah Workman, How to Break a Terrorist with Matthew Alexander, House to House with David Bellavia, The Devil’s Sandbox, and Ghost: Confessions of a Counterterrorism Agent with Fred Burton. Bruning is well traveled as an embedded combat correspondent. For his reporting in Afghanistan, the Department of Defense presented him with the Thomas Jefferson Award in 2010. For his work with the Oregon National Guard, he was inducted into the 162nd Infantry Regiment in September 2011 as an honorary member. John lives in Independence, Oregon, and has two children. Read more Customers Review: When I was in high school back in the early 80’s, I read Steve Birdsall’s excellent book on the 5th Air Force, “Flying Buccaneers”, and fell in love with the great race by several pilots to become the highest-scoring American ace of World War II. In the following years, I read stories about Richard Bong, Thomas McGuire, Neel Kearby, Gerald Johnson and Charles MacDonald in various other books, but never knew how much the desire to be Number One consumed some of them…until now.John Bruning has written a fantastic book about these five men (albeit with a bit more emphasis on Bong and Johnson) and how the competition to first surpass Eddie Rickenbacker’s World War I victory total of 26, and then be the highest scoring American of World War II, consumed some of them and became a major story in newspapers across the United States. Most of the previous books I’d read about these pilots focused more on the facts about their numbers of victories and had virtually nothing about the more human sides of all of them. Bruning looks at each one in detail, with Bong and Johnson being a bit more detailed, and gives background on their upbringing, personalities, families, training and how they ended up competing against one another in the skies over New Guinea and the Philippines. For Bong and Johnson there is much detail about their early flight training and their love of the special women waiting back home for them in the U.S.From the early days of flying P-39 and P-40 fighters to the later days of P-47 and P-38 supremacy, this book focuses mainly on a few fighter groups and squadrons, and is a bit of a love letter to the P-38 Lightning. Since the P-38 was the plane which four of the five pilots profiled flew the majority of the time, it’s story is an integral part of their stories as well. The P-38 was my father’s favorite plane from World War II and this made the book a bit more special to me.Unfortunately, this book doesn’t have a happy ending for four of the five pilots, something which they all deserved and which they fought so hard to achieve. Bruning’s book is a wonderful tribute to these five heroes (and several others) and belongs in the library of anyone interested in the 5th Air Force, American aces and/or the war in the Southwest Pacific. Truly an excellent read. | |
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