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A review by jdill1717
Come Fly the World: The Jet-Age Story of the Women of Pan Am by Julia Cooke
adventurous
emotional
informative
medium-paced
4.25
*I was given early access to this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
I was really interested in picking up Come Fly The World by Julia Cook, which focuses on Pan Am flight attendants (referred to at the time and in the book as stewardesses), because I wanted to get a deeper look into the lives of these women who I've only really seen in Mad Men like depictions and sexist ads from the time. And boy was I not disappointed! Julia Cook's writing style is very easy to read and draws you into the lives of these women, whether it's in the day to day of their flights or in the women trying to end workplace discrimination. It's a must read if you're even vaguely interested in aviation history or travel history.
The sections of the book that I found the most interesting and compelling were the ones dealing with the Vietnam War and the experiences the women had not only with the soldiers but also the refugees fleeing the war. By far the most moving was the chapter talking about airlifting the children, most of them infants, out of Vietnam during the month before the war ended. This was something about the war I hadn't really heard talked about as much as the experiences of soldiers or the anti war movement and is something I definitely want to look into more in the future.
I was really interested in picking up Come Fly The World by Julia Cook, which focuses on Pan Am flight attendants (referred to at the time and in the book as stewardesses), because I wanted to get a deeper look into the lives of these women who I've only really seen in Mad Men like depictions and sexist ads from the time. And boy was I not disappointed! Julia Cook's writing style is very easy to read and draws you into the lives of these women, whether it's in the day to day of their flights or in the women trying to end workplace discrimination. It's a must read if you're even vaguely interested in aviation history or travel history.
The sections of the book that I found the most interesting and compelling were the ones dealing with the Vietnam War and the experiences the women had not only with the soldiers but also the refugees fleeing the war. By far the most moving was the chapter talking about airlifting the children, most of them infants, out of Vietnam during the month before the war ended. This was something about the war I hadn't really heard talked about as much as the experiences of soldiers or the anti war movement and is something I definitely want to look into more in the future.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Sexism, and Blood