Gordon Taylor

Taylor was a brilliant 1930s Australian aerial navigator who accurately steered his country's great aviation hero, Sir Charles Kingsford Smith, across the width of the Pacific with the aid of a sextant and a crude drift sight. His account of the perilous 1934 oceanic flight approaches at times the beauty and narrative power of Saint-Exupéry's writing.
Sir Gordon Taylor brings the reader into the cockpit with him, sharing his adventures as he pioneered trans-ocean flights, with only the sun and stars to guide him. On one memorable occasion Sir Gordon saved an aircraft from ditching in the Tasman Sea by his brave actions, for which he was subsequently awarded the George Cross. Inter-war stories of riding out 2 hurricanes on the open ocean at Easter Island and in a barely-protected lagoon are mind-boggling; and his tale of the trans-Tasman inflight oil change would be unbelievable sheer fantasy if it were not well documented elsewhere. 
Much of the book focuses on exploratory flights using a PBY/Catalina in the 1930's to set up military routes for WWII and the post -war civil aviation boom.… (meer)

Nathaniel Davidson has a life of privilege as the son of a peer of the realm in 1820s, Northumberland. This privileged existence hides a complex relationship between himself, an overbearing, sometimes cruel father, and an intensely loving mother. Living in the picturesque setting of Thistlebrough Hall in Northumberland, Nathaniel seems set for life.
His father's imperious and domineering conduct forces the young man to flee his home, seeking his fortune in South Africa with a newly found friend, Captain Christian Davenport. A crash course education in life ensues with Nathaniel finding employment with Jan De Vries, a Dutch ivory trader. He eventually meets and marries the beautiful Mary Behardian.
Nathaniel's constant dream is to return to his childhood home and this he achieves despite many adventures and setbacks. He is forced to examine his principles, to make stark life changes and ultimately to reconcile himself with his father. A life of decision, disappointment and tragedy combines to develop Nathaniel Davidson into a man of substance and worth.… (meer)