ANNE MORROW LINDBERGH

First Lady of the Air

Kathleen C. Winters
Palgrave Macmillan
Hardcover (November 2006)
Trade Paperback (May 2008)

Their fate lay in the winds. Dusk had come and gone and the moonlight waned to a sliver in the British outpost in western Africa. Without wind and the moon’s shine, the flight was impossible. It was their last chance. Anne searched the sky for telltale signs, listening for the wind.

Then it came: a breeze, rustling through the palms, scurrying gently across the seas.

At midnight, Charles throttled wide-open, and the heavy craft, saddled with huge silver pontoons laden with fuel, leaped across the waves and soared aloft. Quickly, Anne logged the take-off time, then settled to her tasks. . . .

Anne Morrow Lindbergh: First Lady of the Air portrays Anne’s life from a sheltered upbringing to marriage to crew on dangerous expeditions. It is a tale not yet told . . . but one that will inspire readers with a remarkable woman who leaves a remarkable legacy.

A licensed glider and airplane pilot, Anne was herself a pioneer, often overshadowed by her husband. Although her flying career ended in the 1930s, aviation sealed her fate for the remainder of her life as an author and as partner in her forty-five year marriage with Charles.

More than sixty years have passed since her flight accomplishments, and now is the time to introduce readers to the tale of excitement and adventure, previously unpublished, and unknown by Anne’s many fans. Her recent death in February 2001 will spark and renew interest. And this readable, absorbing book will appeal to the younger female generation eager for genuine role models.

“Winters’ thoughtful account . . . brings out the truth. With this book, she brings back to us the excitement and adventure of those early flying days, and honors a quiet, courageous woman who became an integral part of it all. I recommend this work wholeheartedly, and with gratitude.”—Reeve Lindbergh, daughter of Anne Morrow and Charles Lindbergh

“Although numerous books have been written about Anne Morrow Lindbergh, Winters rightfully asserts that none has addressed her aviation achievements. That the author is able to bring something new to the Lindbergh story is impressive, and she does it through both technical explanations of Lindbergh’s accomplishments and Anne’s own words about her flying exploits, marriage, and writing. In Winters’ beautifully written biography, Anne Morrow Lindbergh emerges as a more complete and relatable character then ever before, and an aviator long overdue for respect.”—Booklist

STARRED REVIEW! “A perfectly calibrated tribute to an early heroine of the air.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Drawing on an admirable array of research, aviation historian Winters documents how Charles trained his young wife to serve as copilot, navigator and radio operator on their long pioneering flights. Anne’s important role in early aviation has not been treated as extensively elsewhere.”—Publishers Weekly

“Kathleen Winters brings Anne Morrow Lindbergh’s life as a pilot into sharp focus. Her book is a welcome addition to the history of women in aviation.”—Martha Ackmann, author of The Mercury 13: The True Story of Thirteen Women and the Dream of Space Flight

“Only a handful of writers have captured the beauty of flight in writing, and Anne Morrow Lindbergh figures prominently among them. It is curious that until now, no one has examined the life in the air from which that writing drew. In a wonderful telling, long overdue and most welcome, Winters gives us a rich and vibrant portrait of Anne Morrow Lindbergh, pilot.”—David Toomey, author of Stormchasers and co-author of Amelia Earhart’s Daughters

“Kathleen Winters has rendered a service to aviation history by telling a story that, amazingly, has gone untold for decades.”—Barrett Tillman, author of Lemay