Books & Java

The Aviator's Wife

by Melanie Benjamin

Synopsis: 

For much of her life, Anne Morrow, the shy daughter of the U.S. ambassador to Mexico, has stood in the shadows of those around her, including her millionaire father and vibrant older sister, who often steals the spotlight. Then Anne, a college senior with hidden literary aspirations, travels to Mexico City to spend Christmas with her family. There she meets Colonel Charles Lindbergh, fresh off his celebrated 1927 solo flight across the Atlantic. Enthralled by Charles’s assurance and fame, Anne is certain the celebrated aviator has scarcely noticed her. But she is wrong.

Charles sees in Anne a kindred spirit, a fellow adventurer, and her world will be changed forever. The two marry in a headline-making wedding. Hounded by adoring crowds and hunted by an insatiable press, Charles shields himself and his new bride from prying eyes, leaving Anne to feel her life falling back into the shadows. In the years that follow, despite her own major achievements—she becomes the first licensed female glider pilot in the United States—Anne is viewed merely as the aviator’s wife. The fairy-tale life she once longed for will bring heartbreak and hardships, ultimately pushing her to reconcile her need for love and her desire for independence, and to embrace, at last, life’s infinite possibilities for change and happiness.

Drawing on the rich history of the twentieth century—from the late twenties to the mid-sixties—and featuring cameos from such notable characters as Joseph Kennedy and Amelia Earhart, The Aviator’s Wife is a vividly imagined novel of a complicated marriage—revealing both its dizzying highs and its devastating lows. With stunning power and grace, Melanie Benjamin provides new insight into what made this remarkable relationship endure

My Review:

Reading this book was so gratifying. I really knew nothing about Charles Lindbergh other than the obvious transatlantic flight and the kidnapping of his son. I knew nothing about his amazing wife Anne Morrow Lindbergh. She was an incredible woman. One that I want to now know more about. The expression "behind every good man is a good woman" comes to mind. She wasn't just good, she was better than him. Lindbergh was a hero to so many for reasons even he could not accept. According to Melanie Benjamin's account he was opinionated and emotionally reserved, so much so that he was truly hard to like much less love. But, Anne Morrow Lindbergh did love him. Over time, she loved him in different ways but her admiration for her husband and his intellect and accomplishments was impressive. I think it took a very special woman to be so controlled by another person without losing her sanity or giving up on her own future. But, she was always optimistic and seeking to find all the good that came from every bad situation. She did it with style and a natural poise that anyone could attribute to her privileged upbringing but in Benjamin's account it is clear that AML was a woman of great inner strength which translated into how she handled everything she endured and had to deal with in her 45+ year marriage to the world's hero.

This is a magnificent example of historical fiction that will not only educate but give you an insight only someone (Melanie Benjamin) who has done very thorough research can effectively provide.