Book picks similar to
Captain by Thomas Block


first-reads
fiction
aviation
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The Paradox of Vertical Flight


Emil Ostrovski - 2013
    Jack's ex-girlfriend, Jess, has given birth, and Jack is the father. Jack hasn't spoken with Jess in about nine months—and she wants him to see the baby before he is adopted. The new teenage father kidnaps the baby, names him Socrates, stocks up on baby supplies at Wal-Mart, and hits the road with his best friend, Tommy, and the ex-girlfriend. As they head to Grandma's house (eluding the police at every turn), Jack tells baby Socrates about Homer, Troy, Aristotle, the real Socrates, and the Greek myths—because all stories spring from those stories, really. Even this one. Funny, heart-wrenching, and wholly original, this debut novel by Emil Ostrovski explores the nature of family, love, friendship, fate, fatherhood, and myth.

Missing Gretyl - You Only Love Twice


Si Page - 2013
    OTHERS ARE LESS COMPLIMENTARY. Buckle up for a comedic roller coaster ride, with bad wigs, waxing disasters, holiday scams, a deluded hitman, lust, arson and murder. Albert Trollop takes refuge at his allotment and the betting office, while his wife, Gretyl, lives for the shopping channels, car boot sales and local gossip. After fifty years of marriage, she’s thinking of a new life, somewhere hot. He’s thinking of the crematorium. She’s thinking of stuffing herself in a bikini. He's thinking of a taxidermist. The Londoners continue their separate lives until a mysterious letter turns their world upside down. In Essex, Dave and Sharon Soddall are struggling on benefits and looking for a get-rich-quick solution. With the help of a devious financial advisor, they concoct a plan and ‘Costa Soddall Travel’ is born. Will the Soddalls pull off the con of a lifetime? Can Gretyl be silenced? Will Albert end up missing Gretyl? "'Missing Gretyl' is a rare treat - a brilliantly written comedy novel that's genuinely funny." Mark Stibbe, best selling, award-winning writer. Missing Gretyl is also available as a Kindle eBook through Amazon.

Sailing Down the Moonbeam


Mary Gottschalk - 2008
    As the voyage takes her farther and farther from her traditional support systems, her world becomes more and more defined by forces outside her control. Mary's travels through often uncharted island communities, provides a compelling metaphor for a journey of self-discovery.

The Angels' Share


Rayme Waters - 2012
    As she grows older, and her make-believe worlds are not enough to protect her, she descends into drug addiction and eventual resignation. When this finally leads her to be physically beaten near the point of death, she is saved by a compassionate neighbor named Sam who gives Cinnamon the opportunity to reclaim her life. Now, working at Sam s vineyard in the beautiful Dry Creek Valley, Cinnamon Monday attempts to put her life in order, find the will to overcome past demons, and utilize her strengths to live a positive, successful life on her own terms.

The Lighthouse Road


Peter Geye - 2012
    But their pasts travel with them, threatening to capsize even their fragile hope. In this triumphant new novel, Peter Geye has crafted another deeply moving tale of a misbegotten family shaped by the rough landscape in which they live--often at the mercy of wildlife and weather--and by the rough edges of their own breaking hearts.

Jesus at Walmart...a Reed Shaking in the Wind


Rick Leland - 2011
    Fueled by Pastor Malachi Marble's fall from faith, which tumbles him into the late night world of Walmart.Author Rick Leland spent fourteen months working as a Walmart Overnight Stocker doing research for the book. Well, not purely for research."Actually I needed the money to live on," Leland said. "But I knew God was working something out in my life, as inspiration for Jesus at Walmart emerged even before my first night's work was over." Walk past the greeter; into the heart of Walmart with Malachi Marble. Grab a shopping cart. You'll need something to hang onto during this trip to Walmart like no other. And when you exit Jesus at Walmart, expect to leave a changed person.

The Overdue Life of Amy Byler


Kelly Harms - 2019
    So when the guilt-ridden husband who abandoned her shows up and offers to take care of their kids for the summer, she accepts his offer and escapes rural Pennsylvania for New York City.Usually grounded and mild mannered, Amy finally lets her hair down in the city that never sleeps. She discovers a life filled with culture, sophistication, and—with a little encouragement from her friends—a few blind dates. When one man in particular makes quick work of Amy’s heart, she risks losing herself completely in the unexpected escape, and as the summer comes to an end, Amy realizes too late that she must make an impossible decision: stay in this exciting new chapter of her life, or return to the life she left behind.But before she can choose, a crisis forces the two worlds together, and Amy must stare down a future where she could lose both sides of herself, and every dream she’s ever nurtured, in the beat of a heart.

The Valley


William Meikle - 2010
    They arrive to find the town empty and some of the buildings wrecked and strewn over a wide area. A new cave leads them to a land that time forgot, a high valley full of animals that are extinct elsewhere, but have thrived in the remote environment. But something else is loose in the land, something even older that has emerged from the cave system. Soon the remaining men are fighting for their lives, and the lives of everything in the valley.

The Flying Circus


Susan Crandall - 2015
    Set adrift by life-altering circumstances, they find themselves bound together by need and torn apart by blind obsessions and conflicting goals. Each one holds a secret that, if exposed, would destroy their friendship. But their journey of adventure and self-discovery has a price—and one of them won’t be able to survive it.As they crisscross the heartland, exploring the rapidly expanding role of aviation from barnstorming to bootlegging, from a flying circus to the dangerous sport of air racing, the three companions form a makeshift family. It’s a one-of-a-kind family, with members as adventurous as they are vulnerable, and as fascinating as they are flawed. But whatever adventure—worldly or private—they find themselves on, they’re guaranteed to be a family you won’t forget.

Brewster


Mark Slouka - 2013
    It's 1968. The world is changing, and sixteen-year-old track star Jon Mosher is determined to change with it. Stuck in Brewster, he forms a friendship with rebellious Ray Cappicciano and headstrong Karen Dorsey, embarking on a race to redeem his past in this heart-wrenching story of love and friendship.

Health Revelations from Heaven and Earth


Tommy Rosa - 2015
    Lying by the road, he felt a tug whisking him off into a tunnel of light to meet his divine teacher in heaven. After several weeks in a coma, Tommy returned to earth to walk again with a heightened sense of connection to one and all.Around the same time, Dr. Stephen Sinatra, an integrative cardiologist, was dismantling the prevailing ideas of preventive pharmacology with his holistic approach to treatment. In their first encounter, Tommy got the intuitive message that Dr. Sinatra had an infection in his hip. Tommy s insight confirmed Dr. Sinatra s own suspicion. When Tommy shared with Dr. Sinatra the divine revelations of healing that he had learned, Dr. Sinatra was shocked the keys to solving the imbalance of energy that he had identified as the cause of most chronic illnesses were the same as those Tommy was relating.From this intersection of the divine and the scientific, Tommy Rosa and Dr. Sinatra began writing a prescriptive guide for healthy living. In "Health Revelations from Heaven and Earth," Tommy Rosa reveals the eight revelations, gleaned from God, that will lead you toward revitalized health, a newfound sense of purpose, and spiritual balance fully corroborated by Dr. Sinatra s four decades of medical expertise bringing heaven and earth a little bit closer.

Final Authority


Robert J. Dobransky - 2002
    He has a job he loves, a vivacious, pregnant wife, a young son and a beautiful home in Evergreen, Colorado. Bruce's life is rewarding, full, and his position is seemingly secure. Suddenly, an accident in Reno, Nevada, threatens to snatch away everything he cherishes: his family and his career. Bruce was in command of the ill-fated flight, and the airline and FAA blame him for the catastrophe.Bruce soon finds himself fighting against powerful enemies: the airline's bosses, the government, his wife's wealthy mother, and other unseen but dangerous adversaries. Just when Bruce's situation seems hopeless, help arrives from several sources: David Goldstein, an investigative reporter, reveals that there is much more to the accident than meets the eye. Mike Barrow, a retired Marine colonel and close friend of Bruce's, joins the investigation only to find himself thrust into the corporate intrigue at the highest level. Ava O'Kane, a thirty-eight-year-old executive within the circle of power at the airline, makes a shocking discovery of corruption within the organization and she has to choose between evil and good, love and money.Finally, pushed to the limit, Bruce takes control of his predicament in an unprecedented and decisively violent, though legal manner. It's the only way he can stop the conspiracy. In the process of saving himself, his career and his company, can an airline captain get away with murder?

Haunted Collection Series: Books 1-3


Ron Ripley - 2018
    Seeking answers, he teams up with paranormal expert Jeremy Rhinehart. They race against time to stop a man who’s spreading chaos and violence by way of deadly, haunted objects… 1 - Collecting Death Victor Daniels and Jeremy Rhinehart discover a myriad of haunted collectibles unleashed upon the world. Together they begin to hunt them down. But it’s not long before they realize the haunted spirits within are more bloodthirsty now than when they were alive… 2 - Walter’s Rifle Stefan Korzh’s plan to spread fear and paranoia is unraveling perfectly, but Victor Daniels and Jeremy Rhinehart won’t let that happen. They race against time to stop the mayhem, but as they get closer, they discover how dangerous Stefan truly is. 3 - Blood in the Mirror As Victor and Jeremy continue their quest against evil, they discover a terrifying force lurking in their midst. Nothing is ever as it seems…

Show Me a Kindness


Nancy Brandon - 2017
    With the help of Comfort, a domestic worker living with her own tremendous loss, Marthanne discovers that Oma is another distinct personality inhabiting her body. In a time when mental illness is taboo, Marthanne and Oma’s simple, small-town life is fraught with complexity and danger.With gossip running rampant, Marthanne and Oma will do anything to avoid their greatest fear: commitment to an insane asylum. Only by relying on Comfort’s kindness can they navigate their uncertain future. Friendship becomes sanctuary, and the quest for an ordinary life leads to an extraordinary bond.Deeply moving and exquisitely wrought, Show Me a Kindness is a haunting novel of love, survival, and hiding in plain sight.

The Petpost Secret


Radhika R. Dhariwal - 2014
    But not in the way he thinks.Though he is just thirteen, Squirrel is the PetPost slave—the last slave in the animal town of Bimmau. Every morning,he puts on his PetPost uniform and delivers the mail for hislazy mongoose boss. But when Squirrel swigs someforbidden wine at a wedding, his mother's voice speaks tohim. 'Start your journey that leads to long-lost Brittle’s Key,' she urges. 'Go find, my son, your destiny.'Brittle's Key—with the power to set him free and turnanyone in the land into a slave—can be Squirrel's. But, tofind the key, he must find and sip three mysterious liquids.With his friend Des and a crow, Azulfa, he sets off on adangerous quest. He travels from the walled city of beesto the fireless mice tea-estate to the treacherous desert,while fleeing the savage Kowa army and outsmarting thevicious Colonel who wants the key for himself.Will Squirrel succeed? For not only his fate, but alsothe fate of the land hangs in the balance . . .