Caroline Johnson (2)

This book is a generally well-written memoir about an F/A-18 Super Hornet Weapons System Officer, who happens to be a woman. The military information is just what you would expect: training, the mental game, and some unclassified deployment details. The part of the book that really hits home is the harassment and treatment Caroline gets from her own squads – the men that are supposed to be supporting her, while they expect her support as well. The Navy wives even vilify her and call her out for wearing a “too revealing” dress to a party.

I admire Caroline for putting up with all the slurs and backbiting gossip. It’s a shame that someone with such drive, talent and patriotism should be dealing with such petty bullshit. Most of her fellow recruits treat her normally; it’s the few bad apples as usual spoiling everything.

JET GIRL skips around from chapter to chapter, telling us Caroline’s story from first days in the Navy all the way up to being deployed in Iraq. The chapters do not proceed sequentially; once you realize that and are ok with the story skipping back and forth, the reading smooths out. The story turns a lot darker when Caroline shares her battle with depression with us. I cannot imagine staying in the Navy as long as she did, nor can I believe how badly she was treated despite excelling in her classes and as a pilot. Unfortunately, she decided to change careers to ultimately save her sanity, which I feel is the Navy’s great loss. She started to realize the stress that her body was under due to the strain of deployment even before her aircraft carrier had left the Persian Gulf. She began isolating herself once she got back to the States and was told by the flight doctor to “man up…and stop being a drama queen”.

At this point the story got very frustrating for me, as I felt Caroline’s pain and wanted to scream at all the men that this was a real issue and deserved the proper attention. I could not believe what she was writing – that she was not properly supported by her commanding officers and her squad. The rest of the book details her downward spiral and her “icing out” by her commanders and crew, along with her guilt and confusion about what she should do with her life – leave the Navy or try to stick it out.

The last section is an excellent example of what depression looks and feels like. Poor mental health carries such a stigma in this country and I am happy Caroline had the courage to bare her soul and share her story. Her message is important on many levels – her depression, the mistreatment she experienced, and her love for the Navy all come together in an illuminating and meaningful way. I can only hope that she has smoothed the way for other female Navy pilots with her no-holds-barred examples of how she was treated. Let’s see if the Navy can make the future better than its past.… (meer)

Review:
Not sharing the same achievements as Caroline, I still found her story relatable to my military expierance. Parts of that story are painful and parts are laugh out loud hilarious.
If you are wanting to take a peek into the world of Navy fighter pilots this is a great book. Caroline breaks it down and she did a lot in a short time.
She also talks about one of the toughest things, culture. Specifically the culture within the military around women and their accomplishments and the environments they are in. But she did it with hopenfor the future and reflection on what can change, not a bashing angry rant. But a call to action in a way.

Quotes, notes and snippets:

Foul lines on the flight deck: "....when doing anything on the flight deck you had to keep your head on a swivel because something was always trying to kill you. There were warheads to duck under, hoses with explosive jet fuel to step over, jet blast to dodge and jet props that would chop you up like a samurai sword."

FNG ".....should only speak when spoken to, should have big ear and little mouths, should absorb evey bad deal in the squadron and pay their dues."

Mandofun: mandatory fun

Mindset: "...when senior leaders take this mindset it takes someone truely brave to break it. Someone must say 'guys that wasnt cool. She's one of us." In the military in general it is a rare person that will stand up and risk becoming the Pariah themselves."

Depression: "....eventually you have to look up and acknowledge your world has up ended."… (meer)

This excellent memoir of a female aviator's training and career as a Navy jet pilot grabbed me from the start. One of the most fascinating books I've read in quite some time. I literally could not put it down.

Especially interesting were the practical aspects she talked about, such as what she brings along when flying, surviving SERE (survival, evasion, resistance, and escape) training, and the details behind deployment, but the portions dealing with the deaths of fellow pilots she knew really hit home.

Probably one of my favorite books of the year. Highly recommended!!

(I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via Net Galley, in exchange for a fair and honest review.)… (meer)