King of All Balloons

By Mark Davies,

Book cover of King of All Balloons: The Adventurous Life of James Sadler, the First English Aeronaut

Book description

The daring flights of the early balloonists that were the first steps on mankind's upward journey to the Moon and beyond have been strangely neglected, and their names have been largely forgotten.

This book helps to redress that situation. James Sadler was an extraordinary English pioneer who overcame many obstacles…

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Why read it?

1 author picked King of All Balloons as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

James Sadler was the first Englishman to fly. He was a brilliant man – his balloon design is the one we still use – but because he was an Oxford pastry cook he was ignored by the university. I am interested in lost and forgotten history and this is a story that needed to be told.

From Sylvia's list on Oxford and where town meets gown.

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Tap Dancing on Everest by Mimi Zieman,

Tap Dancing on Everest, part coming-of-age memoir, part true-survival adventure story, is about a young medical student, the daughter of a Holocaust survivor raised in N.Y.C., who battles self-doubt to serve as the doctor—and only woman—on a remote Everest climb in Tibet.

The team attempts a new route up…

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