Those that do make the journey home to England can convey crucial information on German troop movements-and help reclaim the skies from the Luftwaffe. Codenamed Source Columba, the mission aims to air-drop hundreds of homing pigeons in German-occupied France. His quest brings him to Epping and to the National Pigeon Service, where Susan is involved in a new, covert assignment. Thousands of miles away in Buxton, Maine, a young crop-duster pilot named Ollie Evans has decided to travel to Britain to join the Royal Air Force.
Hatched from an egg that Susan incubated in a bowl under her grandfather’s desk lamp, Duchess shares a special bond with Susan and an unusual curiosity about the human world. All her birds are extraordinary to Susan-loyal, intelligent, beautiful-but none more so than Duchess. After losing her parents to influenza as a child, Susan found comfort in raising homing pigeons with Bertie. Enemy fighter planes blacken the sky around the Epping Forest home of Susan Shepherd and her grandfather, Bertie. It is September 1940-a year into the war-and as German bombs fall on Britain, fears grow of an impending invasion.
And the pigeons come to life as real heroes and heroines in this vital operation.Inspired by fascinating, true, yet little-known events during World War II, The Long Flight Home is a testament to the power of courage in our darkest hours-a moving, masterfully written story of love and sacrifice. The courage and steadfastness of the British people undergoing the Blitz shines through. While there are some war scenes, for the most part the book develops its characters gently and politely. The ones returning with their messages greatly aided the war effort.
The pigeons carried small canisters into which French resistance members and Allied soldiers hiding in France put notes containing intelligence about German troop movements and fortifications many of the pigeons lost their lives. It weaves its tale around the true story of the homing pigeons used by Britain during WWII to infiltrate German-occupied France. "Long Flight Home" is a first novel by Alan Hlad. If you want a refreshing change, this love story-of devotion between different generations, cultures and species-will do it. In an era where incivility and crudeness have sometimes ruled the day, it is delightful to be transported by an old-fashioned historical novel, with characters who display consideration and good manners.
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