Customer Reviews

The Plane Truth!: Shift Happens at 35,000 Feet

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I received this book as a going away present and wasn't overly enthusiastic about reading it as I have had mostly bad experiences with flight crews. Yes, I am one of those grumpy frequent flyers Frank speaks of in his books. It's not that I have anything against flight attendants specifically, but the ones I run into are usually the senior citizen types that make me feel like a scolded puppy dog when I get annoyed. That aside, I really enjoyed this book. It made me laugh while giving me another view of air travel. I think there may have been a little exageration from time to time but overall I thoroughly recommend this book for frequent flyers, and flight crewmembers who take themselves too seriously. Favorite chapters were Seatbelt Nazi,as I have met several aboard, and Unspoken Heroes, that gave a brief synopsis of the plight of the flight crews on 9/11. In the media you heard about the firefighters, the New York Mayor, and the people in the tragedy but why didn't we hear about the flight attendants or pilots? Sorry off on a tangent, good book, great read and two thumbs up!

I am a bit concerned about the price of paperbacks listing for $15, however, that point aside, this book was worth it for me. I was heading for the airport and bought it on a whim after reading a local review. It took the edge off of any anxiety I might have had and made my journey a fun one. I didn't get the pen name A Frank Steward until half way through the book, but the short chapters kept me entertained as I read the entire book across the Atlantic. I will now get his first book Air Traveler's Guide for my next trip and hope it's as good. I give 5 stars only for a select few, if there was a 4 1/2 star rating I would give it. My favorite chapter was Can't Handle the Truth as I was reading it during a delay and it was too true to life. I do recommend this book for your next flight.

Anyone who can take a chapter and devote it on inflight deaths and still have me laughing has my thumbs up. This book was well written, insightful and gave me renewed hope that there is some personality in the airline folks yet. I enjoyed both of his books thoroughly and now feel that it is possible to find humor and intrigue out of anything in life. My favorite chapter was "Going Dutch" I laughed so hard I nearly had an accident, enough said.

I was a bit hesitant on reading another flight attendant's book after a different flight attendant/author managed to put me in a bad mood, that and the fragile state of the airline industry had me fearful of a sterile approach. But this was not the case for this book. The Plane Truth is written with humor, class and a human "frank" approach that I look for in a book. I enjoyed the last one by this author, but this one was better and I feel that "A Frank Steward" has the makings of a world class travel writer. I am a big Dave Barry fan but I liked this book as much, if not more than Dave's last one, and that is saying a lot.

I'm reluctant to be too negative about this book because the author seems like a very nice guy.

Frankly, "The Plane Truth" just didn't do it for me. There are way too many cliches ("don't judge a book by its cover," "never assume anything," "tomorrow is always a new day" and "C'est la vie.") and REALLY bad puns (smelly feet = "you've got way too much sole"; flatulence = "to air is human"; an analogy comparing the airline industry with a paint selling business ends with "If the big carriers don't catch on it would make the world of paint...thinner" and using his pseudonym "Frank" in too many situations as in "be Frank" and "a few Frank tips").

I read the book on a flight from DC to Egypt and really wanted to like it and, better yet, to get a good laugh out of it. I did appreciate the insider stories but too many of them didn't have anything to do with the airline industry. There's a chapter on the author's stock picking strategy, one on his roommates in London, two flight attendants who take off to surf around the world, his wife's hair salon, a weekend in a Las Vegas suite with two hardcore gamblers, his book collection (again with the advice to never judge a book by its cover), one on his bout of anal itching and even one on his grandfather's retirement strategy.

There's too much advice on mundane things such as how to get through security faster, how to maintain personal hygiene on long flights, how to live life (to the fullest), why not to have racy photos on your camera, why old people can be fun, too and why we, the flying public, shouldn't really know why a flight is delayed.

I didn't read the author's first book. Maybe it was better. I get the feeling he should have stopped at one. It doesn't look like there was enough material for Number Two. The chapters are very short!

The bottom line is, take the author's advice. Pick this book up if you find it on an airplane. It's good for a chuckle or two but not the asking price.

I picked up this book since i travel quite a bit and i was hoping to get more out of it.Altough this is not a bad book per se, its not the ultimate travel book.Basically its a book in which the author explains some of the situations he experienced as a flight steward.A couple are funny, the rest are just odd situations but not major things.

Great air travel book. It was a fun and frankly honest look at the adventures and misadventures of the inflight life. I loved it and it passed the time on what would have been an ordinary business trip. I look at air travel in a different light now, humorous.

The Plane Truth is the sequel to the popular Air Traveler's Survival Guide and provides a blend of entertainment and insight into air travel. Blend stories of outrageous things happening in the cockpit and stewardess side jobs to airline bankruptcies and you have an unusually hilarious guide offering no end of laughter.

I got this book as a christmas gift and just couldn't put it down. I fly for American Airlines and thought that I would be very critical. I liked Plane Insanity but absolutely loved this one. I had heard of A Frank Steward from the newspapers but now want more. I have recently ordered his first one The Air Traveler's Survival Guide and will post my review after I am done.
This book is a humorous look at the antics of flying for a living, combined with the reality at what actually goes on at 35000 feet.
The author touches briefly on the emotions of airline employess regarding 9-11, but doesn't dwell on it. It was something that had to be mentioned.
I agree with Frank, let's bring a little humor back to an area that has seen better days. Shift Happens, why not laugh at it.
My rating is 5 stars for a surprise gem of a read.

I was in an airplane on a lengthy delay when I got to the chapter about extended delays called "Can't Handle the Truth" I laughed so much I am sure the flight crew thought I was crazy. It was as if the author was guiding me through my misadventures in-flight, story by story. I guess I always dreamed of what it would be like to be a crewmember and now I have a better understanding, good and bad. Okay, this book isn't going to win a nobel prize, but I feel in some way this is what's missing in books these days, humanity and a real sense of the author. What a twist it was to discover that his wife is a pilot, that's one for the records, female pilot married to male flight attendant? They have fun with that point in the book as well. Humor is all around us and A Frank Steward (nice pen name)makes me believe that it can be found up in the skies as well. Definetly a fun and interesting book. One question, where are all the fun Frank Stewards when I fly?