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First Light Geoffrey Wellum

First Light By Geoffrey Wellum

First Light by Geoffrey Wellum

Reviews:
£5.80
New RRP £10.99
Condition - Very Good
<20 in stock
Very Good£5.80Good£5.50Well Read£5.20New£9.09

First Light Summary

First Light: The Phenomenal Fighter Pilot Bestseller by Geoffrey Wellum

'Vivid, wholly convincing, compelling. One of the best memoirs for years about the experience of flying in war' Max Hastings, Sunday Telegraph

Two months before the outbreak of WWII, seventeen-year-old Geoffrey Wellum becomes a fighter pilot with the RAF . . .

Desperate to get in the air, he makes it through basic training to become the youngest Spitfire pilot in the prestigious 92 Squadron. Thrust into combat almost immediately, Wellum finds himself flying several sorties a day, caught up in terrifying dogfights with German Me 109s.

Over the coming months he and his fellow pilots play a crucial role in the Battle of Britain. But of the friends that take to the air alongside Wellum, many never return.

***

'An intimate account . . . rich in detail' James Holland, Wall Street Journal, 'Five Best World War II Memoirs'

'An extraordinarily deeply moving and astonishingly evocative story. Reading it, you feel you are in the Spitfire with him, at 20,000ft, chased by a German Heinkel, with your ammunition gone' Independent

'A brilliantly fresh, achingly written memoir. Thrilling and frightening on virtually every page . . . Wellum takes you into battle with him. A book for all ages and generations, a treasure' Daily Express

First Light Reviews

Vivid, wholly convincing, compelling. One of the best memoirs for years about the experience of flying in war -- Max Hastings * Sunday Telegraph *
It took him 35 years to turn his notebooks into a narrative, and the result is a highly personal account of what it is like to face mortal combat, day and night, and what it does to a man who is barely more than a boy -- Ben Macintyre
An intimate account . . . rich in detail * Wall Street Journal, 'Five Best World War II Memoirs' *
An extraordinarily deeply moving and astonishingly evocative story. Reading it, you feel you are in the Spitfire with him, at 20,000ft, chased by a German Heinkel, with your ammunition gone * Independent *
A brilliantly fresh, achingly written memoir. Thrilling and frightening on virtually every page . . . Wellum takes you into battle with him. A book for all ages and generations, a treasure * Daily Express *
Amazingly fresh and immediate . . . absolutely honest, it is an extraordinarily gripping and powerful story * Evening Standard *
There have been countless books about the Battle of Britain. But the combination of immediacy - Geoffrey Wellum had jotted down notes in an exercise book at the time - and distance - another 35 years would pass before he expanded his notes into a narrative - gives this account extraordinary depth and resonance . . . First Light will rank among the finest of Second World War memoirs * Independent *
One of the most gripping personal accounts of aerial warfare ever written * Guardian *
Wellum's story is astonishing . . . moving yet startlingly clear-eyed * Telegraph *
No other account of flying in the Battle of Britain has been articulated as well as Geoffrey's in First Light * Daily Express *

About Geoffrey Wellum

Geoffrey Wellum was born in Walthamstow, and educated at Forest School, Snaresbrook. Aged seventeen, he joined the RAF on a short-service commission in August 1939 and served with 92 Squadron throughout the Battle of Britain. In March 1942 he went to 65 Squadron at Debden as a Flight Commander and from there to Malta later that year. He led a group of eight Spitfires off HMS Furious to Luqa during Operation Pedestal.

Returning to England, Wellum became a test pilot on Typhoons at Gloster Aircraft. He later became a gunnery instructor until the end of the war. He stayed in the RAF after 1945, serving in Germany as a staff officer, followed by a four-year tour of duty with 192 Squadron. Wellum left the RAF in 1961 to take up a position with a firm of commodity brokers in the City of London until his retirement to Cornwall. He died in July 2018, aged ninety-six.

Additional information

GOR011271754
9780241987841
0241987849
First Light: The Phenomenal Fighter Pilot Bestseller by Geoffrey Wellum
Geoffrey Wellum
Used - Very Good
Paperback
Penguin Books Ltd
20200213
368
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Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
This is a used book - there is no escaping the fact it has been read by someone else and it will show signs of wear and previous use. Overall we expect it to be in very good condition, but if you are not entirely satisfied please get in touch with us

Customer Reviews - First Light