Beyond the Sky

the passions and pioneering life of Millicent Bryant, aviator

James Vicars

$34.95

Paperback

Not in-store but you can order this
How long will it take?

Availability Information

We source books from suppliers in Australia and overseas. For books we don't currently have in stock, the time it takes to get them from our suppliers can vary widely - from a few days to a few months - so we check each book with each supplier to determine the expected time it will take to be supplied to us.

We then advise you accordingly. If the time taken to get any book is too long for you, you can let us know and we will cancel or adjust your order, and refund as required.

To find out the anticipated arrival time for specific items prior to ordering, please contact us by phone or email:

Phone +61 2 9264 3111, or 1800 4 BOOKS (1800 4 26657) if outside Sydney:
option 1 Abbey's Bookshop (Crime, History, Science, Kids & more) • info@abbeys.com.au
option 2 Language Book Centre (ESL & Foreign Languages) • language@abbeys.com.au
option 3 Galaxy Bookshop (Sci-fi, Fantasy, Romance, Graphic Novels) • sf@galaxybooks.com.au

QTY:

English

Melbourne Books
03 November 2020

Biography: general; Biography: sport; Aviation skills & piloting; Biography - Australian

Ninety years after her drowning, the true story of Australia's first woman pilot reveals a pioneer in life as well as the sky.

In Australia in the mid 1920s, flight was still new, dangerous and glamorous - and aviators were all men. That was until a petite and quietly-spoken 49 year-old mother of three, Millicent Bryant, took her first flight, igniting a passion that led her to become the first woman in the Commonwealth outside Britain to gain a pilot's licence. While newspapers all over Australia began following her progress in the 'race', few outside her family knew the determination and depth of personality that took her into other areas considered unusual for a woman at that time, such as business and politics. And were it not for an ironic stroke of fate, her name may have become as familiar as other pioneers of the air such as Smithy, Hinkler or Nancy Bird Walton.

Working from Millicent's own rediscovered letters and writings as well as newspapers and other historical sources, this innovative biographical work reveals a pioneer of the sky and beyond. On one hand it tells, for the first time, of a flyer who was also a businesswoman, small-scale property developer, golfer, student of Japanese at Sydney University and early motorist who had driven over 35,000 miles around New South Wales up to the summit of Mt Kosciuszko - and who could fix her own car to boot. On the other, it seeks to illuminate the inner story of a highly individual, modern woman whose life encompassed not only hidden romance, heartbreak and tragedy but also a spirit of change in the social, political and marital conventions of 20th century Australia.

By: James Vicars
Imprint: Melbourne Books
Country of Publication: Australia
Dimensions: Height: 233mm, Width: 153mm, Spine: 26mm
Weight: 556g
ISBN: 9781925556520
ISBN 10: 1925556522
Pages: 272
Publication Date: 03 November 2020
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

A great-grandson of Millicent Bryant, James Vicars began writing professionally as a journalist and creatively as a poet and short story writer. He now works as an editor, teacher, researcher and writing mentor, especially to school and university students. He was awarded a Fellowship of Australian Writers National Literary Award - Community Writers' Award (Joint winner) in 2002 for poetry and has been the recipient of two Varuna fellowships, the most recent of which was to begin the present manuscript.