Young Shannon Donnelly comes from a family of Irish immigrants who have made a home in Southern California. The year is 1929 and the entire world seems to be at a crossroads. Shannon’s parents have been murdered by a feuding family and now the 15 year old is a target too. Abandoning her childhood home, Shannon takes refuge with a daring young pilot. The pilot, Drew Patterson, is just the first of many folks Shannon becomes acquainted with in this Depression through WWII story. Forced to fend for herself at a young age, she misses out on a steady home life and her inexperience keeps getting her in trouble. Driven by a need to avenge her parents’ deaths, Shannon’s passion is eventually channeled into healthier outlets, eventually garnering her the nickname ‘Queen of the Air’.
Reach for the Sky is a light and airy story spanning a turbulent decade and a half in American history. From a brief encounter with Amelia Earhart to living as a member of Hollywood’s elite, Shannon’s life is an exciting rags-to-riches tale that isn’t all happy endings. An orphan to start, her life is always gaining momentum as she pioneers female aviation and entrepreneurship and even mingles with celebrities, all while juggling marriage and civil duties. The strengths in this novel are the myriad historical accounts and personalities. However, the plot touches on so many momentous events that the development of the characters is sometimes left in the dust trails of history. I really liked that the narrative voice spans many characters, adding insight to the story beyond the narrow perspective of Shannon alone. For a wild adventure piloted by a saucy lead, Reach for the Sky is packed with more dips and bumps than an airplane in a thunderstorm!
