Flying Hero Class [Paperback]

Thomas Keneally (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 17, 1994

When Palestinian guerillas hijack a flight from New York to Frankfurt, they find an aboriginal dance troupe among the passengers - similarly dispossessed of their land, whose side will the aborigines take? Conflicts of loyalty, terror and revolutionary fervour form the explosive ingredients in this riveting and thought-provoking novel. 'As an intellectual piece of suspense, Flying Hero Class can hardly be surpassed' Observer

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A jet carrying an Australian aboriginal dance troupe and its white tour manager is hijacked.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From School Library Journal

YA-- A tale of intrigue and hijacking. Frank McCloud is the manager for the international dance tour of the Barramatjara, a remote Australian tribe. On the troupe's flight to Europe, a small band of Arab terrorists hijack the plane in hopes of obtaining the release of political prisoners. McCloud and two other men are singled out as the people's enemies. Taliq, the terrorists' leader, accuses him of exploiting the tribe for their land and begins brainwashing the crew, passengers , and the Barramatjara themselves to turn them against the scapegoats. Keneally, in a slow methodical plodding style, allows readers to see, and sometimes feel, the plight McCloud and his companions experience. The tension and psychology at play here are believably presented and add greatly to the book's appeal.
-Diane Goheen, Topeka West High School , KS
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Sceptre (February 17, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0340560096
• ISBN-13: 978-0340560099
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,984,028 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars action packed, March 18, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Flying Hero Class (Hardcover)

This is an action-packed novel, lighter than most of Keneally's works, with a flawed central character who makes a living as the manager of a tribe of Aboriginees who travel from city to city to put on performance art pieces. When their flight is hijacked during one such trip, undercurrents of prejudice, exploitation and social hierarchy in anarchical situations come to the fore. I read this straight through on a flight last year and was, for a time, transported- just what a well-written novel should do! Though written some years ago, this novel remains fresh today- fresher than ever given recent hijackings, and evidence that some things have not changed - we have just chosen to look the other way. Gripping.

1.0 out of 5 stars Rubbish in parts, better in others, September 6, 2005

By 

Marc R. Lucas (Bristol UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Flying Hero Class (Paperback)

This book bored me if I am honest, it did not hit the spot like I expected it too. The plot jumped around far too much, to the point where I skipped sections and went back to the "on board drama" which in parts was also dull.

I was disappointed

1 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Horrible, March 22, 2000

By 

Alexander Basman (Foster City, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Flying Hero Class (Paperback)

This book is astonishingly poor. Characters are primitive and underdeveloped. Plot develops in jumps. I must admit the idea is not too bad, but the result is horrible. Waste of time.....