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189th out of 607 books
—
1,998 voters
Flygirl
Ida Mae Jones dreams of flight. Her daddy was a pilot and being black didn't stop him from fulfilling his dreams. But her daddy's gone now, and being a woman, and being black, are two strikes against her.
When America enters the war with Germany and Japan, the Army creates the WASP, the Women's Airforce Service Pilots - and Ida suddenly sees a way to fly as well as do some...more
When America enters the war with Germany and Japan, the Army creates the WASP, the Women's Airforce Service Pilots - and Ida suddenly sees a way to fly as well as do some...more
Hardcover, 256 pages
Published
January 22nd 2009
by Putnam Juvenile
(first published 2008)
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Don't read this because of the blurb on the back by Newbery/Printz teacher's pet Jacqueline Woodson.
Don't read it just because it's a window on a seldom told story of women in WWII. Don't read it just because of the theme of an African American woman trying to pass for white in the segregated world of the 1940s. Don't read it just because you're looking for another "girls can do anything they put their minds to it despite the odds" sort of read.
Read it because it's well written, well researched...more
Don't read it just because it's a window on a seldom told story of women in WWII. Don't read it just because of the theme of an African American woman trying to pass for white in the segregated world of the 1940s. Don't read it just because you're looking for another "girls can do anything they put their minds to it despite the odds" sort of read.
Read it because it's well written, well researched...more
Get it at the library: http://bit.ly/10EiVyi
Catherine's Response:
Sherri Smith has crafted a story that deals with the complex issues of race and gender at one of the most fascinating and volatile times in US history. Although at times it felt like she slipped into a recitation of facts about historical figures of the time and aviation, for the most part the story of Ida Mae and her struggles was highly thought-provoking and moved along quickly. Having grown up in the South, where racial discri...more
Catherine's Response:
Sherri Smith has crafted a story that deals with the complex issues of race and gender at one of the most fascinating and volatile times in US history. Although at times it felt like she slipped into a recitation of facts about historical figures of the time and aviation, for the most part the story of Ida Mae and her struggles was highly thought-provoking and moved along quickly. Having grown up in the South, where racial discri...more
1 like · like · see review
Interesting concept, but I didn't think the writing or the plot was that well developed. It was a fairly short book, but it took me longer than I thought to get through it because it just didn't grab me. I liked the characters, but, again, it was hard to get into the book and become very connected to them. The concept of passing was interesting to me and the conflict and stress it introduced for Ida Mae, but when the book ended and we were left hanging on what would happen in her future, the que...more
Ida Mae loves to fly and dreams of being a licensed pilot. But she has two big obstacles living in the American south in the 1940’s – she’s a woman and she’s black. When the US enters World War II and Ida Mae reads about the Women Airforce Service Pilots program, she decides to apply. Because she knows she has no chance to be admitted into the program as a black, she decides to try to pass as white (which she can thanks to her light skin), even though her family is against it.
This is a solid and...more
This is a solid and...more
Young Ida Mae is determined to join the Women's Airforce Service Pilots during World War II. Knowing they won't accept her as a black woman, she decides to pass for white, raising painful issues in her family as her paternal side of the family are all light skinned and won't have anything to do with her family after her father married her mother who was a dark skinned woman. Ida Mae makes good friends in the WASP and does well there, but her secret presses on her everyday. When one of her former...more
During WWII, women pilots flew support missions for the armed forces in the U.S. The novel explores the life of a girl who passes for white to be able to fly and succeeds. The writing style is calm and surprisingly quiet despite the romance and danger faced by the characters.
Flyyyyyyy Girl! Say what, say what, say what?
Her name is Ida Mae and she's a flygirl,
And she didn't let World War II rock her world!
Flyyyyyyy Girl! Say what, say what, say what?
The title reminded me of the chant I remember from my childhood hopsctoch days.
Her name is Ida Mae and she's a flygirl,
And she didn't let World War II rock her world!
Flyyyyyyy Girl! Say what, say what, say what?
The title reminded me of the chant I remember from my childhood hopsctoch days.
Flygirl takes place during World War II and is about Ida Mae Jones (nickname Jonsey), a young African-American woman who wants to fly airplanes more than anything else. But two things are stopping her: her race and her gender. But when she hears about WASP, Women Airforce Service Pilots, she is determined to join the program. She is light skinned enough to pass for white, but to keep up the charade she has to pretend not to know her own family and lie to her friends in WASP to keep them from bei...more
Jan 26, 2009
Jennifer Wardrip
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Shelves:
trt-gold-star-award-winner,
trt-posted-reviews
Reviewed by Amber Gibson for TeensReadToo.com
World War II is raging across the globe and Ida Mae Jones is doing everything she can on the homefront to support the war effort. With her brother, Thomas, off fighting in the Pacific, Ida Mae wants nothing more than to see the boys come home safely.
Donating bacon grease and nylon stockings is not enough. Ida Mae cannot just sit at home when she knows that so many are dying overseas. When she sees an article in the newspaper announcing a new army ini...more
World War II is raging across the globe and Ida Mae Jones is doing everything she can on the homefront to support the war effort. With her brother, Thomas, off fighting in the Pacific, Ida Mae wants nothing more than to see the boys come home safely.
Donating bacon grease and nylon stockings is not enough. Ida Mae cannot just sit at home when she knows that so many are dying overseas. When she sees an article in the newspaper announcing a new army ini...more
Flygirl is a great novel from Sherri L. Smith that is about women's rights and African American during WWII. I gave this book a 4 star rating, because its not the very best book I've read, but its still a great book. I love the reality of this story that you can see this story in your head. Sherri L. Smith did a great job on this story. Great read for teens.
Ida Mae is a woman who has very little freedom, because of her skin color and gender. Being a woman has very low expectations from people. A...more
Ida Mae is a woman who has very little freedom, because of her skin color and gender. Being a woman has very low expectations from people. A...more
Story is interesting, and writing is quite good, but I wasn't blown away. I did like how well the author portrayed the prejudices acceptable to most at the time, not that long ago. It's something that has changed A LOT: the prejudice against race & gender--black, Jewish, female. Good job of showing how people can be in favour of one (i.e., equality of women) but be blind to the other (e.g., Nancy Howard, the poisonously racist girl at WASP school; Audrey Hill, Ida's old squadron leader). The...more
Flygirl is the fictional account of Ida Mae Jones, a light-skinned African American woman who learned how to operate aircraft by spending time in her father's crop dusting plane as a child. The plane sits untouched after a tractor accident claims her father's life, but she aches to take to the sky once again. Unfortunately, obtaining a pilot's license as a black female in 1940s Louisiana is a feat easier imagined than done. When World War II breaks out and Ida Mae finds out about the organizatio...more
Why I picked it up: It was the July pick for my historical fiction group.
Ida Mae Jones loves to fly. She plans to fly her daddy's plane as a crop duster but has trouble finding getting a license as a colored woman in the 1940s. Then the war hits and Ida Mae's brother Thomas enlists. About a year later, Ida sees a newspaper article about WASP: Women's Airforce Service Pilots A chance to fly and help the war effort (and by association, Thomas) is everything Ida Mae could ask for. Except it becomes...more
Ida Mae Jones loves to fly. She plans to fly her daddy's plane as a crop duster but has trouble finding getting a license as a colored woman in the 1940s. Then the war hits and Ida Mae's brother Thomas enlists. About a year later, Ida sees a newspaper article about WASP: Women's Airforce Service Pilots A chance to fly and help the war effort (and by association, Thomas) is everything Ida Mae could ask for. Except it becomes...more
This is a terrific story of Ida Mae Jones (aka "Jonesy"), a black girl who passes for white so she can join the WASP during WWII and fly a plane. Smith does a great job communicating Ida Mae's conflicting emotions--wanting to fly no matter what it takes (leaving family and race behind) but missing that same family so much and wondering who she is now. I like the book's open ending, too.
I was impressed with the even handed treatment of women's options back in the '40's. Ida has no bitterness, re...more
I was impressed with the even handed treatment of women's options back in the '40's. Ida has no bitterness, re...more
First sentence: "It's Sunday afternoon, and the phonograph player is jumping like a clown in a parade the way Jolene and I are dancing."
Ida Mae Jones just wants to fly. Ever since her father taught her in his crop duster, she has never felt more at home than in the cockpit of a plane. Now there is a war on and Ida Mae wants to join the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) to help with the war effort. The only roadblock is that the WASP does not accept African-American girls. Ida Mae faces the d...more
Ida Mae Jones just wants to fly. Ever since her father taught her in his crop duster, she has never felt more at home than in the cockpit of a plane. Now there is a war on and Ida Mae wants to join the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) to help with the war effort. The only roadblock is that the WASP does not accept African-American girls. Ida Mae faces the d...more
This was a very interesting and thought-provoking read.
As mentioned, the protagonist Ida Mae Jones is a young African American woman growing up in the United States. Her skin is 'light' compared to the rest of her family and she could "pass" for white. The decision to do so never crosses her mind until the day she attempts to join the Women's Airforce Service Pilots. There's a very interesting discussion of Ida Mae's father and his background, her light-skinned grandmother and the desperate leng...more
As mentioned, the protagonist Ida Mae Jones is a young African American woman growing up in the United States. Her skin is 'light' compared to the rest of her family and she could "pass" for white. The decision to do so never crosses her mind until the day she attempts to join the Women's Airforce Service Pilots. There's a very interesting discussion of Ida Mae's father and his background, her light-skinned grandmother and the desperate leng...more
On March 10, 2010 the United States Congress awarded over 1000 women the Congressional Medal of Honor for service to their country during WWII. These women were part of the Woman Airforce Service Pilot program, the WASPs. Flygirl is a fictional account of one of them. Ida Mae Jones learned to fly with her Daddy in his crop-duster. She is saving every penny to go to Chicago to test for her pilot’s license. Problem is, because her Daddy died a few years back, Ida Mae’s mother needs her to help sup...more
Ida Mae Jones has a few secrets. She keeps her love of flying and her desire to join the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) in the United States Army quiet as not to upset her mother. But Ida Mae can't just hang out her family's berry farm washing houses forever, she wants to do something with her life. Unfortunately for a colored woman, even a light-skinned one, there aren't a lot of options for her in 1941. When her brother Thomas leaves medical school to go into the Army to defend the U.S....more
Overall Review: Set on the brink of the United States' entry into WWII, Flygirl is a rare and intriguing look into both the life of a young, black woman in the south, and the WASP (Women Air Service Pilots). Ida Mae Jones, a housemaid in Louisiana, has her heart set on being a pilot in the air force. When she learns about the WASP, Ida is determined that she will fly. She takes a life-changing risk that she hopes will turn her dream into a reality. Ida Mae is a easy character to love and become...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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Ida Mae dreams of getting her pilot's license, but being black and a woman in 1941 she already has two strikes against her when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor forcing her brother to ask her to take care of things at home as he headed off to enlist. Ida holds onto her dream of being a real pilot, and when her younger brother gives her a newspaper article on the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) she is determined to become one even at the cost of denying her own heritage to do so.
This was su...more
This was su...more
Set during World War II, this is a story of courage, choices, and consequences. Ida Mae Jones has grown up in rural Louisiana on a farm, where her daddy flew a crop dusting plane until his accidental death. He taught her to fly with him, and even though she passed the test Ida Mae was denied a pilot's license because she is black and female. After her brother enlists as an Army medic, and goes to the Pacific to fight, Ida Mae decides to alter her father's license in order to apply for the Women...more
I know that I gave FLYGIRL a semi-mediocre rating, but the story just was not my cup of tea. That said, I firmly believe that Ida Mae is a character that I would have appreciated at a much younger age. She possesses a quiet strength that only grows as she comes to terms with how society runs. Yes, Ida Mae may have pretended that her mother was her housekeeper when she visited the training camp. Yes, Ida Mae may have acted "white" to help a fellow African American get a fair trade at the hardware...more
FLYGIRL by Sherri L. Smith will lift your spirits and make them take flight.
To me, books are like people. There are bad books, okay books, good books and great books. But then there are books so extraordinary that after you read them, you want to climb to the rooftop and shout to the world -- READ THIS BOOK! Some books are so wonderful, you want to pass them on to family and friends because they make us better people. Such a book is FLYGIRL.
FLYGIRL is an emotional, awe-inspiring story and packed...more
To me, books are like people. There are bad books, okay books, good books and great books. But then there are books so extraordinary that after you read them, you want to climb to the rooftop and shout to the world -- READ THIS BOOK! Some books are so wonderful, you want to pass them on to family and friends because they make us better people. Such a book is FLYGIRL.
FLYGIRL is an emotional, awe-inspiring story and packed...more
I LOVED this book. Not only was it well written in a word sense, but the story and the characters... I mean WOW.
Ida Mae is a very light skinned 'good hair'ed black girl living in New Orleans around the time wwII starts. She learned how to fly from her dad and did crop dusting with her grandpa. Through this, she caught the 'flyin bug' and would do practically anything tobe able to fly - even dress as a white girl, deny her family, and risk her life to join WASP.
I loved Ida and was terribly intere...more
Ida Mae is a very light skinned 'good hair'ed black girl living in New Orleans around the time wwII starts. She learned how to fly from her dad and did crop dusting with her grandpa. Through this, she caught the 'flyin bug' and would do practically anything tobe able to fly - even dress as a white girl, deny her family, and risk her life to join WASP.
I loved Ida and was terribly intere...more
Flygirl is a fictional account of a young light-skinned African American woman in Louisiana in 1941 who decides to pass in order to be accepted into the WASPs (Women Airforce Service Pilots). Her motivation is two-fold and powerful. She has a deep passion to fly, fueled by memories of flying with her deceased father who taught her how to fly his crop duster; and she desires to help bring her older brother home who enlisted as a medic.The core of this book, which is appropriate for 5th-9th grade...more
This book works in so many completely integrated ways it's hard to separate them out to describe it. It is an enjoyable and compelling read with an interesting character and enough conflict and action to keep the pace moving. It is a coming-of-age book in which Ida Mae Jones, a young, light-skinned, black, woman in 1940s from Louisiana, who loves to fly must figure out who she wants to be and who she is, while she is torn between two different worlds that cannot coexist. It is a historical ficti...more
During World War II, a light-skinned African American girl "passes" for white in order to join the Women Airforce Service Pilots. - From library catalog
I really love historical fiction. I didn't know anything about the W.A.S.P. girls! How interesting! Smith does a great job of helping you to feel the struggle with the difficult choices the protagonist must make. I wasn't sure which way I wanted her to go because none of her choices were actually right or fair. I wish there was a sequel...
Review...more
I really love historical fiction. I didn't know anything about the W.A.S.P. girls! How interesting! Smith does a great job of helping you to feel the struggle with the difficult choices the protagonist must make. I wasn't sure which way I wanted her to go because none of her choices were actually right or fair. I wish there was a sequel...
Review...more
I have so many good things to say about this book, I don't know where to start... First, I loved the heroine, Ida Mae. Ida is a small town farm girl whose father introduced her to crop dusting at an early age. Ida loves to fly and when America enters World War 2, she gets tired of collecting silk stockings and cleaning houses and decides to join the WASP. Despite her amazing flying abilities, the WASP will turn her away simply because she is half black. Ida's desire to fly and aide her brother o...more
Ida Mae Jones wants to fly. She has wanted to fly ever since her daddy brought a plane home. Her daddy taught her to fly, but getting her license was another story. Ida is Black, in the South, and it is the 1940s. No one is going to let a Black girl fly at that time. Then Ida finds out about the WASP program. The Army is recruiting female pilots. Ida makes a bold choice. Whereas the other members of her family are dark skinned, Ida is light skinned and can pass for white. So Ida forges her fathe...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Young Adult H...: Flygirl by Sherri L. Smith - July Group Read | 12 | 27 | Aug 06, 2012 09:20am | |
| What were your favorite Caudill books this year, and why? | 3 | 9 | Nov 26, 2011 07:03pm |
Sherri L. Smith's life can best be summed up geographically. Born in Chicago, IL, she spent her childhood in Staten Island, NY, Washington D.C., and Upstate New York. Her parents divorced when she was twelve. A year later, she moved back to Chicago with her mother and big brother. After high school, it was off to New York City for college, San Francisco for graduate school, and then Los Angeles, t...more
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“I wish the army had taught us how to navigate feelings as easily as they did a starless night sky.”
—
5 people liked it
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I just finished reading this. I was bracing myself for a big showdown where the WASP find out that Ida's passing for white and terrible...more
Mar 03, 2009 07:15pm