Rebecca Mascull - The Wild Air

Title: The Wild Air

Writer: Rebecca Mascull

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton

Year: 2017

Nº pages: 390

IBSN: 978-1-473-60443-8

Price: 11.89€ paperback (Amazon); 21.22€ hardcover (Amazon)

Mark: 10/10

Like The Muse, this is a book (or type of literature) I would have never set my eyes on, it would have never draw my attention. But, as I promised myself two years ago, I would buy a book in each country I travel to. In September, I travelled to Edinburgh and, of course, I visited Waterstones. It is an amazing bookstore, three or four floors full of books of any kind. The perfect place to get lost! A must-see for booklovers who travel to Edinburgh. When I came in, this cover drew my attention. A fascinating and colorful cover. I turned to read the blurb and then I look for the Goodread's mark (4.47/5 stars). All I read assured me that it was a history about a brave woman in a man's world, the aviation, during the first half of the 20th century and the First World War. The book smelled of courage, feminism, self-esteem, empowerment. I bought it unhesitantly and, luckily, I was right.

The plot starts with a plain girl called Della. She thinks that she is giftless until her aunt Betty opens her eyes. Betty showed Della that she is skillful doing mechanical works and, talking to her about the work of the Wright Brothers, the pioneers of the aviation and the aviatrix, it started to develop inside of her a fervent passion for flying. For then on, she started to build kites with her aunt and they went to the beach of Cleethorpes to fly them. There, she met Dud Wilson. He is going to help her to carry out her desire for flying and later on, he is going to be a key person in Della's life. Her parents didn't support her and, helped by her aunt, motivated by Dud and working, she's finally able to pay for flying lessons and for the flying license. In a time when being a woman and, on top of that, being a working woman was a hard thing to achieve and it was disapproved. Della had to overcome thousands of obstacles and, when the IWW broke out she is set aside and has to work as errand girl and helping a woman in a mechanics workshop whose husband and son went to the war. Thus, women, had to take the place of men who went to the work. But that it's not all, during the war it develops a beautiful relationship both typical and atypical that, even though sometimes it is forced to continue with the story and to justify actions and events, it hooks you and makes you love it.

Firstly, it was hard for me to get hooked and after reading some pages I started to feel disappointed. But, as I never give up, I force myself to continue and every effort has its rewards. It thrilled me as few books have already done. This was the second book, in all my life, that made me cry (the first it was Love Story) and I am in love with its spirit of freedom and love. Me, who thousands of times I felt like Della, that for me what it matters is my life and my dreams rather than marry and accomplish what is expected from me as a woman. How beautiful is to imagine all those women, each in her time, who fought against the social conventions, against a society and a politico-economic system who forced women to stay home, have children and be a slave of her husband.

To sum up, I recommend everybody to read this book and, I wish and hope that it would help all of you to fight for your dreams and to never give up.