Ely Air Lines Book Blog Tour, Review, and #Giveaway #LoneStarLit

Posted January 28, 2021 by Lynn in Blog Tours, Giveaways, Reviews / 4 Comments

   
ELY AIR LINES
Select Stories from 10 Years
of a Weekly Column,
Volumes 1 & 2
by
MIKE ELY
and
LINDA STREET-ELY
Genre: Nonfiction
Categories: Short Stories / Aviation / Adventure 
Date of Publication: January 29, 2020 
Number of Pages: Volume 1: 350 pages; Volume 2: 330 pages  
Scroll down for Giveaway!

Buckle up and fly with Mike and Linda Street-Ely to discover amazing people, interesting places, and the conquest of flight. Since 2007, readers have enjoyed engaging articles weekly in the newspaper column, “Ely Air Lines.” Now you can step aboard to enjoy a collection of stories that explore the vast realm of the flyer’s world.

 

 

 

CLICK TO PURCHASE!

 

I’ve always had an affinity for travel books (usually of the Bill Bryson variety). There are quirky characters to meet, adventures to be had, and a hilarious disaster or two to recount. Ely Air Lines, Volume 2, is a collection of short stories which fits right in as a great way to vicariously travel when I cannot physically travel.

 

What struck me right from the start is Mike and Linda have quite different, yet complementary, writing styles. Stories are told by both authors, giving the reader deeper insight into the adventures of the authors. Mike’s writing is lush and descriptive. For example:
“We moseyed with Red and Marilyn down a dirt road from their home on the airstrip, along a northern California beach. … Mist from crashing waves refreshes sea kelp collectors and beachgoing dogs taking their two-leggers for a jog.”
Linda’s writing is delightfully full of facts and information. For example:
“After investing $3,140 and about a hundred hours of his time, his garage eventually housed about 12,500 of the twenty-five cent pudding cups, worth around 1.2 million air miles…”
Either of these sections would draw me into a book. But knowing I can have both writing styles in the same book is even better.

 

Short stories are easy to take in at your leisure, a story here while you are waiting in line, a story there when there is a commercial on TV. The stories here are grouped together by similar topics. Everything from plane races to weather to a flying Grandmother are covered. I’ve read a couple of other reviews of Volume 2 on the Lone Star Lit tour (here and here), which both mention the Pumpkin Chunkin story. I loved that one as well. My aim is notoriously bad standing next to the trash can. I can’t even imagine trying to hit a target with a pumpkin from a moving plane! I also thoroughly enjoyed the section “Spoils of Flight” where we learn about how flying impacts our sense of taste and the history of Biscoff cookies!

 

I am certainly no airplane aficionado, nor do I understand the math or physics involved in aeronautics. Mike and Linda made these aspects of flight and navigation approachable. Who knew that planes have ‘pants’? Or that pilots go off on camping trips in their planes? Certainly not me!  And personally, I love Mike’s idea of a Winnebago-esque plane!

 

There are a few photos in volume 2; I wish there were more to showcase all the destinations and different plane types. I did enjoy the doodles and drawings associated with each section.

 

This collection of stories is recommended for anyone who likes to travel vicariously. Or to plan trips based on recommendations from world-travelers like Mike and Linda. Or, if you were learning to be a pilot, this book would be an excellent book to read along with your studies.

 

I received Ely Air Lines, Volume 2, free in exchange for my honest review. Thanks to authors Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely and Lone Star Book Blog Tours for providing this opportunity.

Mike Ely has logged thousands of hours over more than forty years as a professional pilot. He holds an airline transport pilot certificate with multiple type ratings and a flight instructor certificate. Mike has taught people to fly in small single engine airplanes, gliders, turboprops, and corporate jets. As a freight pilot and an international corporate pilot, he has flown through all kinds of weather, to many places, both exotic and boring. His love for writing was instilled by his father at an early age.

Linda Street-Ely is an award-winning, multi-genre author and playwright. She also holds an airline transport pilot certificate, a commercial seaplane certificate and a tailwheel endorsement. She has air raced all over the U.S., including four times in the historic all-women’s transcontinental Air Race Classic. Besides flying, Linda has a keen appreciation for great storytelling. She loves to travel the world, meet people, and learn about other cultures because she believes great stories are everywhere.

Together, Linda and Mike are “Team Ely,” five-time National Champions of the Sport Air Racing League, racing their Grumman Cheetah, named the “Elyminator,” and dubbed “The Fastest Cheetah in the Known Universe.” They live in Liberty, Texas.

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—————————————
GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY!
TWO WINNERS (US only)
Each win an autographed, 2-volume set of ELY AIR LINES
Giveaway ends midnight, CST, January 29, 2021

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CLICK TO VISIT THE LONE STAR LITERARY LIFE TOUR PAGE
FOR DIRECT LINKS TO EACH POST ON THIS TOUR, UPDATED DAILY,
or visit the blogs directly:
1/19/21 Excerpt It’s Not All Gravy
1/20/21 Review V1 Jennie Reads
1/20/21 Review V2 Librariel Book Adventures
1/21/21 Guest Post Forgotten Winds
1/22/21 Review V1 StoreyBook Reviews
1/22/21 Review V2 Reading by Moonlight
1/23/21 Author Interview All the Ups and Downs
1/24/21 Author Interview The Adventures of a Travelers Wife
1/25/21 Review V1 Book Bustle
1/25/21 Review V2 Book Fidelity
1/26/21 Excerpt The Page Unbound
1/27/21 Character Interview Hall Ways Blog
1/27/21 Top Ten Momma on the Rocks
1/28/21 Review V1 The Clueless Gent
1/28/21 Review V2 Chapter Break Book Blog
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Posted January 28, 2021 by Lynn in Blog Tours, Giveaways, Reviews / 4 Comments

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4 responses to “Ely Air Lines Book Blog Tour, Review, and #Giveaway #LoneStarLit”

  2. Kristine Hall

    Great review, and it sounds like it checks several boxes for me (current armchair traveler but planning the next adventures post-COVID)! Thanks for sharing the book!