How to Land a Plane

A small book with a light tone and very easy to understand technical descriptions. I'm going to download it to my smartphone (just in case).

After enjoying Vanhoenacker's Skyfaring, I was looking forward to more. How to Land a Plane is a short (about 60 pages) book that describes in detail how to land a plane. He goes into the aerodynamics, the flight controls, the things that should happen, and the things that might go wrong. He does this in a clear, easy to understand way, occasionally with humor. It's a good book for anyne who is curious about the mechanics of flying, but who isn't going to be going to flight school right away. Who doesn't like to find out how things work and how people do their jobs? A nice book for all ages. (Thanks to The Experiment and NetGalley for a digital review copy.)

Yes, I nailed it. You know the feeling when you approach a book thinking what it will be like – and getting it exactly correct? I thought this would be a finely balanced mixture of sincere and light-hearted; an appreciation that you will never need to land a Boeing 747, but at the same time a book that gives you an appreciation for those that do, and some inkling as to what it might be like. I was expecting a book that proves the adult non-fiction market really doesn't have to limit itself to the 600pp doorstopper, as brief things like this (the audio book would barely have needed a second CD) can be just as appealing, engaging the average reader with a distinctly non-average subject.

But forget all that about me nailing it. The author and colleagues here have nailed it too – it's one thing for me to assume beforehand I have the book I intend to read in front of me; it's far harder actually producing it. But they get it right on every front. So if you intend to read a book that delivers what I expected, then rest assured it delivered just that.