|
|
|
|
|
Some people are afraid of flying; they’d rather drive for days than set foot on a plane. For others, though, it’s incredibly freeing. And that’s definitely the case for two young women who set out to start new lives in the air in Come Fly with Me by Camille Di Maio.
The story begins as a new class of Pan Am stewardesses begins training to take to the skies. Beverly Caldwell is a New York City socialite who walked away from her Wall Street father’s control to make a life of her own. Judy Goodman, meanwhile, is secretly breaking the airline’s rules. Married women aren’t allowed to be stewardesses—and Judy left an abusive husband back in Pennsylvania. As the two women begin their training, they dream of the new, jet-setting lifestyle they’ll soon live. But, along the way, they gain much more than they expected.
Set in the early ‘60s, in the glamorous days of air travel, Come Fly with Me offers a fascinating look inside the life of Pan Am’s stewardesses while telling a story about growing up and breaking away from expectations. Pan Am’s stewardesses were widely regarded as the best of the best, and the author goes behind the scenes to show how they lived and worked—from the weeks of intense training in sunny Miami and the mandatory weigh-ins to the glamorous travel accommodations at exotic locales and the less-than-glamorous treatment of entitled passengers.
But while the characters’ lifestyle and the period details give the story its personality, it’s not really about the jet-setting lifestyle. It’s about these two young women from two very different backgrounds who manage to escape from what had been holding them back. For Beverly, it was a controlling father who expected her to become the perfect, accommodating young high-society wife. For Judy, it was an abusive husband who refused to acknowledge her own passions and dreams. And as they set out on this scary, lonely journey of self-discovery, they build a life-changing friendship that grows with these two women as they find freedom and family and love while taking to the friendly skies.
In exploring the lives of these aspiring young flight attendants, Come Fly with Me takes readers inside this glamorous and extremely exclusive world. But, despite the fact that it’s set six decades ago, its meaningful message about fighting for yourself, your dreams, and your friends is a timeless one.
Listen to the review on Shelf Discovery:
|
|
|
|
