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Excellent memoir by the first female pilot to cross the Atlantic. She grew up in Kenya, survived a lion attack, a baboon attack, a plane crash and managed to train race horses, learn to fly a plane all in the 1920s and 30s.
I could write about Hemingway's praise and how this book was discovered and then propounded in feminist circles, but in the hopes of adding something new, I'd say Markham's narrative ability on the western flight across the Atlantic or her trip to find a lost pilot or the attack by the lion show her talent as a compelling story teller. The fact that she could get me lost in something I wasn't particularly interested in shows Hemingway's high compliment was deserved.
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Beryl Markham was one talented lady and this book tells you why.
Sometimes you read memoirs that just plain make you jealous - not only was Markham's life an incredibly adventurous and interesting one, but her writing is absolutely luminous as well. Her stories of her life are so immersive and compelling (particularly her recounting of the racehorse Wise Child) that you feel as if you were standing next to her. This one has definitely made my list of all-time favorites.
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