Winged Victory
V.M. Yeates
May 2004 · Grub Street Publishing
4.8star
5 reviewsreport
Ebook
456
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About this ebook
Experience the chilling combat of World War I from inside an early biplane in this classic novel, by a pilot who lived through the war himself.
France, 1914. The war on the land is taking to the skies . . .
Pilot Tom Cundall is ready to take on the enemy in his trusty Camel fighter plane. But as he sees more and more planes shot down in flames, he begins to question the war, and what, or who, he is fighting for.
There is no bitter snarl nor self-pity in this classic novel about the air war of 1914-1918, based very largely on the author’s experiences.
Combat, loneliness, fatigue, fear, comradeship, women, excitement—they all are part of a brilliantly told story of war and courage by one of the most valiant pilots of the then Royal Flying Corps.
Praise for Winged Victory
“The greatest novel of war in the air.” —The Daily Mail (UK)
‘Beautifully written with a poet’s eye as well as a pilot’s eye.” —Evening Echo (UK)
“Not only one of the best war books . . . but as a transcription of reality, faithful and sustained in its author’s purpose of re-creating the past life he knew, it is unique.” —Henry Williamson, author of Tarka the Otter
France, 1914. The war on the land is taking to the skies . . .
Pilot Tom Cundall is ready to take on the enemy in his trusty Camel fighter plane. But as he sees more and more planes shot down in flames, he begins to question the war, and what, or who, he is fighting for.
There is no bitter snarl nor self-pity in this classic novel about the air war of 1914-1918, based very largely on the author’s experiences.
Combat, loneliness, fatigue, fear, comradeship, women, excitement—they all are part of a brilliantly told story of war and courage by one of the most valiant pilots of the then Royal Flying Corps.
Praise for Winged Victory
“The greatest novel of war in the air.” —The Daily Mail (UK)
‘Beautifully written with a poet’s eye as well as a pilot’s eye.” —Evening Echo (UK)
“Not only one of the best war books . . . but as a transcription of reality, faithful and sustained in its author’s purpose of re-creating the past life he knew, it is unique.” —Henry Williamson, author of Tarka the Otter
Ratings and reviews
4.8
5 reviews
Chase Dahl
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June 26, 2013
This book is, in many ways, reminiscent of the classic "All Quiet on the Western Front". However, "Winged Victory" never falls into the mire of open cynicism and bitterness the way the Remarque's does. The bitterness and cynicism is there, but it's an underlying current in this tale of a young RFC pilot struggling to survive a murderous existence over France in WWI. And unlike many war yarns, Yeates' characters feel real, as they should, based on his own experiences in the War. There are no jingoistic exhortations, no beating of the war drums, and no sentimentality in this book -- just a story about a group of tired, scared young men handling their lives, the length of which is measured in months if not weeks. Great reading, often poetic, never seeming to sink into outright melancholy. A must for anyone interested in WWI and the Air War in particular.
David Schweitzer
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September 13, 2019
The bittersweet life of an English fighter pilot during WW1. No sugar-coated rhapsody to God and country, a gritty diary of life and death in a RAF squadron flying Sopwith Camels on the Somme front during 1917 - 1918. This would make a great movie as a keen insight piece.
Terry Eagle
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October 30, 2019
Anyone who was brought up on biggles will love this book
About the author
Yeates was born at Dulwich, and educated at Colfe's School where according to Henry Williamson he used to read Keats under the desk during Maths, explored woods, fields and ponds and kept a tame tawny owl/ Yeates joined the Inns of Court Officer Training Corps in 1916 and transferred to the Royal Flying Corps (later the Royal Air Force) in May 1917. Serving with No. 46 Squadron, to which he was posted in February 1918, he flew 248 hours in Sopwith Camels, crashed four times, was shot down twice and scored five victories thereby achieving "ace" status. After the war, he died of tuberculosis in Fairlight Sanatorium at Hastings in 1934. He was survived by his wife Norah Phelps Yeates (née Richards) and his four children Mary, Joy Elinor (later married hristopher David Vowles), Guy Maslin (later married Binnie Yeates) and Rosalind (later married Edward Cullinan); all of whom had lived with Yeates in a small house in Kent on the Sidcup by-pass of the Dover Road.
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