Remains (a story of the Flying Tigers) [Paperback]

Daniel Ford (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 5, 2000

When young Eddie Gillespie discovers a World War II airplane in the jungle, with a grinning skeleton at the controls, he sets a story in motion. Two American fighter pilots in the Chinese Air Force, with their English and Burmese girlfriends, and a Japanese suicide pilot whose name happens to mean "tree of the sun"--they clash at Rangoon, while the British empire falls about their ears. Here is a story of the Flying Tigers, immortalized by their exploits in Southeast Asia in the opening months of the Pacific War, as told by a man uniquely qualified to write about those stirring times. Ford's history of the Flying Tigers won the award of excellence from the Aviation-Space Writers Association, while his novel of the Vietnam war inspired the Burt Lancaster film _Go Tell the Spartans_, which the _Cincinnati Enquirer_ called "one of the noblest films, ever, about men in crisis." Here he deftly melds fact and fiction in an unforgettable wartime romance. "You can't beat remains, kid," Lieutenant Atherton says in a beautifully limned conclusion. "They'll tell the story every time."

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A cracking good yarn about interesting people, including the Japanese fighter pilot whose story adds special realism to the battles." -- Air & Space / Smithsonian magazine, Oct-Nov 2001

About the Author

Daniel Ford has spent a lifetime reading and writing about the wars of the past hundred years, from the Irish rebellion of 1916 to the counter-guerrilla operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. He is best known for his history of the American Volunteer Group--the 'Flying Tigers' of the Second World War--and his Vietnam novel that was filmed as Go Tell the Spartans, starring Burt Lancaster. Most recently, he has turned to the invasion of Poland in 1939 by Germany and Soviet Russia. Most of his books and many shorter pieces are available for Amazon's Kindle ebook reader. He lives and works in New Hampshire.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse (September 5, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595126790
• ISBN-13: 978-0595126798
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,134,681 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Daniel Ford has spent a lifetime reading and writing about the wars of the past hundred years, from the Irish rebellion of 1916 to the counter-guerrilla operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. He is best known for his history of the American Volunteer Group--the 'Flying Tigers' of the Second World War--and his Vietnam novel that was filmed as 'Go Tell the Spartans', starring Burt Lancaster. Most recently, he has turned to the invasion of Poland in 1939 by Germany and Soviet Russia. Most of his books and many shorter pieces are available for Amazon's Kindle ebook reader. He lives and works in New Hampshire. (Photo by Liz Handy, London)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Story Well Told, September 24, 2000

By 

Rory Aylward "Resident of Frank's World" (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Remains (a story of the Flying Tigers) (Paperback)

Daniel Ford's non-fiction history the Flying Tigers is in a class by itself, and his novel "Remains" continues his work of reminding us that the members of the American Volunteer Group were real men who became heroes under the worst imaginable conditions.

His latest work, a novel, does a great job of creating the feel of Burma in 1941-42. The characters of Fitz and Blackie are all the more believable for their foibles and youthful innocence as the grim reality of war overtakes them. Mr. Ford writes equally well describing dogfights over Rangoon or social clashes in the caste-divided clubs below. "Remains", like his earlier non-fiction work on the Tigers, is a grittier but ultimately more heroic flip side to the John Wayne-fantasy versions of these remarkable but all too human warriors.

I read the original downloaded version of this book and I'm delighted to see it in hard copy. I highly recommend it to anyone even slightly interested in the AVG, the period, the East or aviation.

An absolute must-have for Flying Tiger buffs.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars cracking good yarn about the Flying Tigers, November 9, 2000

By 

Paddy O - See all my reviews

This review is from: Remains (a story of the Flying Tigers) (Paperback)

I was a great fan of Daniel Ford's history of the Flying Tigers, and because of that I checked out his novel about college students in the 1960s--"Now Comes Theodora" which I'm glad to see is back in print. So naturally I was excited to hear that he'd combined his two great talents, writing fiction and writing about military aviation.

Here's a novel about the Flying Tigers. The whole cast is there, including Claire Chennault and General George Marshal. But the heroes of the piece are American pilots Blackie and Fitz, their British and mixed-blood girlfriends, and a Japanese suicide pilot whose name translates as "tree of the sun"--Sergeant Hinoki, who is both sympathetic and blood-chilling. They meet, they fight, and some of them die. It's a cracking good yarn. -- Paddy

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Was that Pappy Boyington I saw?, March 14, 2001

By 

Mark (Denver) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Remains (a story of the Flying Tigers) (Paperback)

In any novel that's based on real events, it's a huge temptation to look for real people amongst the fictional characters. I suspect that Dan Ford had the famous Pappy Boyington in mind when he dreamed up the character of "Uncle Wiggly"--the hard-drinking, two-fisted pilot who lamed his knees in a landing accident at Rangoon. Likewise the sweet-natured squadron leader has got to be based on Bob Neale, who as a civilian was the high-scoring American fighter pilot in the spring of 1942. It's great fun picking these characters out of a story that pounds along like a novel by Jack Higgins.

Definately a five-star book. Anyone whose read Dan Ford's excellent history of the Flying Tigers will want to have this novel in his collection also. And anyone who hasn't, will find it the best possible introduction to the men of the American Volunteer Group--not to mention a Japanese air force pilot and some of the English and Burmese girls who populated Rangoon in the last days of the British Empire.

Mark Hallet in Denver