SISTERS IN ARMS: British & American Women Pilots During World War II [Hardcover]

Helena P. Schrader (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 298 pages
• Publisher: Pen & Sword Books (June 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1844153886
• ISBN-13: 978-1844153886
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,164,334 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Helena P. Schrader
Historian, Novelist, Diplomat

Helena P. Schrader obtained a BA in History from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and followed this with a MA in Diplomacy and International Commerce from the University of Kentucky, Lexington. She earned a PhD in History from the University of Hamburg with a ground-breaking biography of the German Resistance leader General Friedrich Olbricht.

Schrader worked for consulting firms in Washington, DC, for the German Privatization Agency (Treuhandanstalt), and as an Investor Relations Manager for a German bank and a German venture capital fund, before joining the U.S. Foreign Service. She is now a career diplomat.

She has lived on five continents and speaks three languages fluently. She owns property in what was once Lacedaemon, which she visits regularly and where she intends to retire.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Comparison that sheds light, July 3, 2007

By 

N. Thomas - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: SISTERS IN ARMS: British & American Women Pilots During World War II (Hardcover)

Sisters in Arms documents just how much necessity is the mother of invention in wartime England as well as the challenges of proving women could fly as well as men in America. One would think women flying military aircraft in two different countries would have more to compare than contrast. However, contrasting the goals, leadership, and organizational structure brings to light completely different, but interesting environments. There are some lessons to be learned from this book. Helena Schrader writes in an entertaining style and includes quotations from pilots of the time. Therefore Sisters in Arms is very readable, not just a scholarly study.

This book is footnoted so it is easy to check the facts. I personally own most of the books referenced and haven't found any problems. If a reviewer, like the first one here, is going say there are problems with the facts; providing an example would make them more credible.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great author, April 10, 2007

By 

Kythera A. Grunge (Black Mountain, NC USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: SISTERS IN ARMS: British & American Women Pilots During World War II (Hardcover)

This book is meticulously researched. It takes a dry subject and makes it interesting via the actual interviews with WWII female pilots. Other reviews below seem upset by the fact that the US side does not come out as glowing as the UK where female pilots are concerned...the sad fact is that they weren't treated equally as well. In the UK they received full benefits, equal pay and respect, in the US this was not the case.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Poor history, April 6, 2007

By 

Phyllis Herring (Washington, DC USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: SISTERS IN ARMS: British & American Women Pilots During World War II (Hardcover)

I agree with the previous review. The historical narrative jumps around distractedly and Ms. Schrader seems to have personal bad feelings towards Jacqueline Cochrane for some reason. Even the illustrations are not new and the people in them are left unidentified. The captioning is meagre. One can find the same pictures in other books complete with the identity of each person. My personal recommedation is Sally Keil's book, "Those Wonderful Women in Their Flying Machines". Though it is now thirty years old, her history seems more objective, the time line is presented in a generally linear way and the photographs, many that reappear in the Schrader book, are adequately captioned.