Aim for the Skies: Jerrie Mock and Joan Merriam Smith’s Race to Complete Amelia Earhart’s Quest

This book is about two women, Joan and Jerrie, who wanted to fly around the world like Amelia Earhart. They both had experience flying and had their own planes, but Jerrie’s was smaller. They were planning on flying in the same year. When the media found out, they turned it into a race. On the first day of Jerrie’s flight, her long-range radio wasn’t working. Joan was in Surinam when she found a leak in her gas tank. Later, Jerrie got caught in a huge sandstorm, and Joan got delayed by a government revolution. Joan was in New Guinea when Jerrie won. She decided to finish the race anyway. Joan and Jerrie both got telegrams from Amelia Earhart’s sister.

I think this book is interesting and charming. The illustrations are really good and pretty realistic. My favorite picture is when Joan arrives in Pakistan. The pictures give you a good sense of place and really capture emotion. In the back, there’s a world map showing Joan’s and Jerrie’s routes. There’s also an author’s note about Joan’s and Jerrie’s differences in planes and paths, when they died, and how reporters weren’t very respectful and called them “flying housewives.” I’m glad this book sets the record straight.