THE FLIGHT GIRLS by Noelle Salazar

For a good story with memorable characters set around a little-known historical gem, put The Flight Girls on your reading list. Texan pilot Audrey survives Pearl Harbor and joins the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP), and forges deep bonds with women who represent some of the more than 1,000 WASP pilots who shuttled a wide array of military planes to airfields all over the United States during WW2, playing an important role in the logistics of the war effort. Audrey, her pilot friends, and her love interest bomber pilot James, are drawn with dutiful natures that seem befitting of the greatest generation. Audrey experiences a depth of emotions as she faces the sheer uncertainties of war and devastating losses. Her feelings for James unfold slowly as she must persevere during their extended war-years separation. Scenes are portrayed convincingly, including Pearl City, December 7th and Oahu (the … ‘island where good and bad collided’…), a dusty west Texas WASP training airfield, and post VE Day Paris. The best of the narrative may be the WASP pilots experiencing the highs and lows of the program, from exulting in their critical roles to despairing yet persisting when they encounter misogynistic military males and structural prejudices to the very end of their service. I was honored to appear in Myfanwy Cook’s New Voices feature in the Historical Novels Review earlier this year along with The Flight Girls debut author Noelle Salazar, who no doubt has a wonderful writing career in front of her.