September Champions: The Story of America's Air Racing Pioneers

by Robert Hull

Second Library Copy. San Diego Air and Space Museum.

223 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1979

About the author

Robert Hull is an English writer, teacher and poet. He regularly runs writing workshops in schools and is a regular contributor to educational magazines.

Some of his better known publications include 'Behind the Poem' (Routledge, 1988) and 'My Childhood in Nazi Germany' (Wayland, 1991) of which he was a ghost-writer.

Reviews

[J Pearson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good oral history of the early days of aviation and nearly forgotten air races.

I came to this book after reading William Faulkner's Pylon and wanting to know more about those 1920s and '30s airplane races and the almost itinerant participants. The book didn't disappoint and the archival photos are great.

My only real criticism is that I would like to have some more authorial writing to stitch things and the interviews together. There is some, but I felt myself doing a lot of research as I worked my way through to fill in some of the history and background.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I had read this book several years ago when I began doing research and writing on air race history. This volume (and its sequel "A Season of Eagles") is a collection of oral histories about the National Air Races both before and after WWII. People interviewed include not only the pilots but also their mechanics, crews, spouses, and even the bell captain at the race headquarters hotel for many years who had a keen insight into the racer's personalities. This book is not about the aircraft, it's about the people involved... this volume tells the story of the races. A superb read.