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Propellerhead [Paperback]

Antony Woodward (Author)
4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
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Customers buy this book with The Garden in the Clouds: Confessions of a Hopeless Romantic by Antony Woodward Paperback £6.29

Propellerhead + The Garden in the Clouds: Confessions of a Hopeless Romantic
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Product details

  • Paperback: 288 pages
  • Publisher: HarperCollins; (Reissue) edition (14 May 2010)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0007107293
  • ISBN-13: 978-0007107292
  • Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 12.8 x 2.2 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 24,173 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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More About the Author

Antony Woodward
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Product Description

Amazon.co.uk Review

Anthony Woodward was never remotely interested in flying. And you don't have to be either to enjoy Woodward's book Propellerhead which tells the story of the author's hilarious and foolhardy attempts to learn to fly a microlight. The main motivation behind Woodward's determination to get his wings is to get the girls. Ever since his mate Richard had returned from Africa having learnt to fly, women seemed to flock to him. Richard had become "a person of deeper substance; tinged with a romantic whiff of intelligence, wealth and daring. Or so the girls plainly seemed to think." Incredulously, and infuriatingly, the bank manager had become a babe magnet. Having gone through long periods of unrelieved celibacy Woodward decides to join a flying syndicate (comprising of Richard and an eccentric Norfolk landowner and his son) and spends the weekends with his head in the clouds and his heart in his mouth. A kind of Those Magnificent Men Behaving Badly in Their Flying Machines, Propellerhead recalls one astonishing aeronautical escapade after the other--such as the time Woodward finds himself slap-bang in the middle of the flight path of a Battle of Britain fly-past. As you read about the hapless pilot's close shaves, near misses and direct hits don't be surprised to find yourself instinctively adopting the crash position. Uplifting and head spinning, Propellerhead is ultimately the story of a man on a flight of self-discovery. Strap yourself in. It's going to be a bumpy ride. --Christopher Kelly --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

‘Inspirational…one of the best books ever written about flying.’ PILOT, May 2011

‘What Nick Hornby did for football, Antony Woodward has done for flying … Wonderful.’ OBSERVER

‘Hugely engaging … refreshingly amateur and low-tech … a true love affair, albeit with clouds and air.’ SUNDAY TELEGRAPH

‘Hilarious … chock-full of incident, heartache, historical detail and near-death-experience, in as entertaining a non-fiction narrative as I have read … Woodward has a gift for storytelling and comic timing and his acute awareness of the absurdities of maleness make this an impossible book not to like. INDEPENDENT

'A must-read for all pilots, everywhere, ever. But would I get in a plane with this nutter? F***, no.' (Captain) ALEX JAMES, BLUR

'Nick Hornby meets Jeremy Clarkson in a cockpit. Acutely funny', MARIELLA FROSTRUP

'Woodward's a truly terrible aviator - but his enthusiasm makes even the most timid flier want to take to the skies.' FHM

‘A genuine original–smartly written, eccentric, funny, engaging, with just the right combination of anorak and anarchy…The flying sequences are fabulous, the historic ghosts of Bomber command are strangely moving, and the whole book stays wonderfully airborne throughout. It reminds me of the early lunatic Redmond O’Hanlon, and a bit of Roger Deakin’s weird, soul-searching, swim-across-England book “Waterlog”.’ RICHARD HOLMES

'Lunatic… written so engagingly as to ensnare even those who know nothing about flying.' TIM BINYON, EVENING STANDARD

'Propellerhead is one of the best aviation books of the lot, and it has almost universal appeal…Take it from me, anyone who has even an incipient trace of flying in their blood will want to read Propellerhead.' PHILIP WHITEMAN, GENERAL AVIATION

'This eccentric, charming and poignant book is full of gems…sublime.' COUNTRY LIFE

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Inside This Book (Learn More)
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Spiffing 1 Dec 2002
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
At first I thought this might be one of those naval-gazing, trivia packed, obsessive accounts about a hobby that has become “comically” out of hand. Flying micro-light aircraft isn’t something that all of us have much interest in given that we value our lives too much, but I’ve always had more than a passive interest in flying. I suspect many of us think about flight, even if it’s only in the airport bar prior to our holiday when we wonder “What if a wing fell off?”, and it is pleasing to learn that the author doesn’t differ from us in that respect. Despite this, he is still drawn toward the romance of flight, and sets out with his friend to realise the twin ambitions of learning to fly and then impressing girls by telling them “Actually, I am a pilot”. To varying degrees of success, they achieve their ambitions.
The book is written with genuine warmth and unforced charm, and it never feels that the author is trying too hard to impress or amuse. Neither does he flood you with useless information on the technical aspects of flying a micro-light - it is the people and situations that are continually of interest. His obsession with flying, for instance, soon pales against his obsession with impressing a girl from his office who alternately ignores or flirts outrageously with him and every other rabid male she meets. The micro-light becomes a means to a romantic end, but you’ll need to read the book to find out which wins his heart in the long term. In my opinion Propellerhead knocks the socks off anything written by either Nick Hornby or Tony Parsons (although I admit the latter is faint praise) and I’d thoroughly recommend it.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By Joan
Format:Paperback
I'm a microlight pilot. I learnt to fly in a Thruster like Woodward's. Not only did I enjoy his beautiful telling of the tale, but I kept laughing in recognition of incidents and difficulties so much like those I encountered in my own training. I've even met people who claim to be the unnamed ones he writes about (microlighting is a small world in many ways). I still fly a Thruster.

The book is a well-deserved success. I recommend it to anybody who is struggling in their attempts to learn to fly, I recommend it to anybody who isn't, I recommend it to anybody who just wants an amusing read.

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Neil VINE™ VOICE
Format:Paperback
This book was actualyl recommended to me by a friend... Knowing I was learning to fly microlights, he thought it would be appropriate!

Overall, this book is superb... very easy, light, humourous reading! Admittedly I can't quite remember the ending, but literally all events leading up to the end were hilarious... from his flying partners to the girl in the office!

Recommended for some light entertainment!

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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Propellerhead
Absolutely fabulous read, finally got round to buying it after seeing the author on a BBC programme, following a bunch of microlight flying anoraks on their trips around the UK. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Kevin Armstrong
A great insight into the microlight world, and an entertaining read.
The author is disarmingly honest about his shortcomings as a student pilot,and explores his true motives behind taking up microlighting with wry humour. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Mike C
quality of book
Bought 'Propellerhead' and feel that for £10.99 this is a very poor product. The book itself has good reviews, but the printing, paper quality and general finish of this book is... Read more
Published 5 months ago by biggles
A great Read
One of my favourite flying books ever. This is a story that anyone that has flown or even started to fly would enjoy, it is well written and gives a chuckle at every turn.
Published 12 months ago by Me
Highly entertaining read
After we had discussed some flying experiences - he had had a pilot's license and I had done some paragliding - a friend recommended this book to me. Read more
Published 15 months ago by totnes_nigel
Learning to Fly
I cannot recommend the book highly enough. Even if you have nothing to do with aircraft or aviation you will enjoy a man's journey through early adulthood. Read more
Published 21 months ago by Mr. M. Oakley
Microlighters view
Brilliant book on learning to fly a microlight aircraft. Every step of the pain and gain is described virtually as it happened to me ( and loads of others ). Read more
Published on 11 Oct 2009 by RJ Webb
PROPELLORHEAD
A friend recommended this book as I am learning to fly. Learning should be fun but I was taking things far to seriously to a point that it was becoming something I did not look... Read more
Published on 10 Oct 2009 by Samuel Matier
Worryingly accurate!
I'm a low hour student pilot struggling to fly. While not quite 'Fate is the Hunter' material, I've learned more from this book then many others. Read more
Published on 17 Jun 2007 by Mr. Niall Cooney
Top class
I wasn't aware that it was possible to capture the frustrations, pleasures, terrors and moments of sheer absurdity that happen as part of learning to fly in such an eloquent,... Read more
Published on 6 Feb 2007 by Becca101
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