Rating: 
Summary: An excellent first-hand account of being a spitfire pilot
Review: I fully agree what Mark Hopper had to say in his review. For me the book was definitely 'life-changing'. I know from history how important and vital the Battle of Britain was, but seeing the battle portrayed in films and reading it in history books just didn't have the impact as Geoffrey Wellum's account. He's certainly the person who sits on my 'hero pedestal' now. Please write some more Geoffrey and detail for us how the rest of the war was for you. How did the war affect your life in subsequent years? Did you marry Grace? You have done all your old friends and comrades a great service by writing this book. Well done and thank you.
Rating:
Summary: The Battle of Britain through a reflector gunsight
Review: I picked the English edition of this book up in London two weeks ago (it's Number Four on their best-seller list now). As a student of the Battle of Britain, this book was a real treat. I read it in conjunction with "Fighter Boys" (out now) and found the two works complimented each other very well. Wellum was the youngest operational Spitfire pilot in combat during the Battle, and his accounts of training and flying combat missions in the fall of 1940 are first-rate. His description of flying head-on into a formation of Heinkel 111 is the stuff of adventure novels -- only these events really happned and he lived to tell the tale.
The book falters a little toward the end. Although there are clues given that Wellum was sufferering from combat exhaustion, he tends to gloss over that portion of his service. The book ends rather abuptly as well. This is a shame because the bio tells us Wellum went on as a test pilot for Hawker Typhoons and Meteor jets. Given the author's success in detailing flying sequences, I would have loved to read more about his adventures in the cockpits of these rare airplanes.
Rating:
Summary: How things have changed
Review: Not being much of a reader of books, I decided one day to pass by my local bookshop and try out the experience. I had no clue what to get and after 30 minutes fruitless searching I found myself trudging towards the shop exit. Determined not to feel like I hadn't made an effort, I made a final and slightly desperate search through the display table at the front of the shop. The last book I looked at for some reason felt right, I don't know why but it did. I took it to the counter and as I paid for it, I felt an overwhelming certainty that I was going to enjoy it. "First Light" by Geoffrey Wellum, yes, definately a good choice. I'm rather an optimist by nature but even I didn't expect to be quite so taken by this book. It was a real privelige to read and I dare say that for a now budding reader like myself I shall never quite find anything to rival it. I experienced all sorts of emotions reading this book, from laughing out loud to trying to keep "a stiff upper lip" I was riveted from the first page by the warmth and honesty of the writing. I feel very humble indeed knowing what these men did for us. And I feel an overwhelming sense of sadness that the world these men fought so hard to protect, has fast become so selfish and unprincipled. I only wish I could turn back the clock and live the way it was back then. It wasn't perfect by any means, but it had heart. And if there's one thing that stands out in this book than that is it - Heart. Mr Wellum cared, about his country, about his family, about his friends and about himself. He says at the end of the book that his only regret was that his life had already reached it's pinnacle by the time he was 22. Well, I'd like to respectfully disagree. Thank you Mr Wellum for your wonderful story, you have inspired me immensely and left me feeling very proud to be British.
Rating:
Summary: An Outstanding Read.
Review: This is a terrific book. Very highy recommended. If you have an interest (or even a mild curiousity) about what it felt like to have fought in WWII as a fighter pilot this has got to be the book to read. Be warned that once you start a chapter you will not be able to put it down. While it is obvious that the author survived the war the suspense and drama is high nonetheless. The most amazing thing is that this is all a true story . . .
Rating:
Summary: Giving Respect to a Hitherto Unsung Hero of the RAF
Review: This is a very compelling book. As the son of a Second World War veteran of the European phase of the war, in reading Mr. Wellum's account, I want to thank him for helping to make real in my mind, the stresses that war places on you. In particular, while reading the chapter in which Mr. Wellum describes his chase of a Junkers 88 bomber in foul weather and his subsequent efforts to return to his airbase, I felt as if I were the cockpit with him, hoping that I'd get down safely and in one piece! Having read other books by and about the famous RAF aces (Bader, Tuck, and Paul Richey), I recommend this book very highly. It's very well-written and will give you a deeper appreciation for the sacrifices made by the Second World War generation. Thank you, Mr. Wellum, for your service and for this book. There are many more people than you may realize who are grateful for what you have written. Thank you again.
Rating:
Summary: Fresh after 50 years
Review: You'd think that after 50 years, all the worthwhile first-person there-I-was accounts of flying Spitfires in the Battle of Britain would have been published. You'd be wrong.
This is an exceptionally well written book that gently yet almost instantly transports you to England, 1939. You'll go through RAF flight training, and then be behind a V12 Merlin over Kent in the middle of the Battle of Britain. There are hundreds of such true tales - and I've read most of them - but this is clearly one of the best.
'Boy' Wellum not only takes us inside the cockpit, but inside the emotions of a young man at war, and inside an amazing time and place in world history. If you are a pilot looking for what it was like to fly the Tiger Moth, Harvard, then at 168 hours climb into a Spitfire, this is the book for you. And if you are interested in a literate immersion into The Few, this is the book for you.
Rating:
Summary: Fresh after 50 years
Review: You'd think that after 50 years, all the worthwhile first-person there-I-was accounts of flying Spitfires in the Battle of Britain would have been published. You'd be wrong.
This is an exceptionally well written book that gently yet almost instantly transports you to England, 1939. You'll go through RAF flight training, and then be behind a V12 Merlin over Kent in the middle of the Battle of Britain. There are hundreds of such true tales - and I've read most of them - but this is clearly one of the best.
'Boy' Wellum not only takes us inside the cockpit, but inside the emotions of a young man at war, and inside an amazing time and place in world history. If you are a pilot looking for what it was like to fly the Tiger Moth, Harvard, then at 168 hours climb into a Spitfire, this is the book for you. And if you are interested in a literate immersion into The Few, this is the book for you.
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