From historian Wohl comes an extraordinary account of the development of aviation and the heroism, romance, adventure, and shattered dreams that followed. Archival photos.

A prize-winning historian offers an exhilarating book--the first cultural history of the pioneering phase of aviation--which tells the stories of the artists, writers, and intellectuals whose imaginations were captured by the power of flight. Over 300 illustrations, some in color.

The possibilities of flight have long fascinated us. Each innovation captivated a broad public, from those who gathered to witness winged medieval visionaries jumping from towers, to those who tuned in to watch the moon landings. Throughout history, the visibility of airborne objects from the ground has made for a spectacle of flight, with sizeable crowds gathering for eighteenth-century balloon launches and early twentieth-century air shows. Taking to the Air tells the history of flight through the eye of the spectator and, later, the passenger. Focusing on moments of great cultural impact, this book is a visual celebration of the wonder of flight, based on the large and diverse collection of print imagery held by the British Library. It is a study of how flight has been pictured through time.

The idea of flying has always captivated earthbound humans. When mortals invented gods and demons, the supernaturals came equipped with the power of flight. And humans, being envious, wished that they too could float free, soar like a bird or stand calmly on nothing. So from the beginning, when the legends of gods and the stories of man were told in theatre, flying has often been a part of the action. The theatrical act of a human flying is a scenic wonder. It began in religious plays, continued in church celebrations, and has had a place in a host of theatrical forms -- opera, the fairy play, vaudeville, melodrama, pantomime and spectacle. The apparatus for staging flight has taken its place among a host of other stage machines intended to illustrate a play's story.

A fascinating account of America's relationship with the airplane

In this authorised biography of one of the most remarkable Irishmen of the twentieth century, Richard Aldous is independent in his judgements and frank in his examination of his subject's shortcomings and eccentricities. But most of all, he writes with verve and pace. Tony Ryan was born in a railwayman's cottage and rose to enormous success, overseeing the spectacular making of two business fortunes and the dramatic loss of one. After an early spell in Aer Lingus, he set up an airline leasing company, Guinness Peat Aviation (GPA), which had its headquarters in Shannon and quickly became the largest such enterprise in the world. Ryan was a hard taskmaster and the company reflected his ferocious work ethic. Yet, despite a stellar board of directors, a botched and poorly timed Initial Public Offering in the 1990s saw GPA crash and burn. Ryan lost almost everything. All that remained was a little airline running massive deficits. Ryan set about turning Ryanair around, putting in one of his assistants, Michael O'Leary, to help knock it into shape. The rest is history. Ryan remade his fortune, lived lavishly and elegantly, was a generous patron of the arts, and in every respect larger than life. His spirit is one that Ireland needs more than ever today. As the nation strives for its own recovery, it can find inspiration in the story of how one of its most famous sons rose and fell, and then rose again. Not one to stand still or lament mistakes, Tony Ryan's determination never to give up is the real lesson of this story. He was in so many ways Ireland's Aviator.