Secrets of a Stewardess: Flying the World in the 1980s

by Gretchen Ryan

People always seemed amused whenever Gretchen Ryan recounted anecdotes of her transformative experiences as an air hostess in days gone by. Many even suggested she write a book about it. So she did. These were the debauched days of flying in the 80s, when flying was sexy, hanky-panky abounded, smoking permitted, passengers wore suits, the cockpit never locked and cutlery made of steel. This was a time of excess, cleverly disguised as fun. This humorous, tongue-in-cheek memoir recalls both amusing incidents and tragedies on board as well as at various destinations around the world, including London, Hong Kong, Mauritius, Ilha do Sal and New York. Against the backdrop of this ‘anything-goes’ world of flying, for 10 years life was a kaleidoscope of fun and excitement.

Genres: Memoir, Aviation

256 pages, Paperback

Published August 1, 2019

Reviews

[Tove · Rating 2 out of 5]

I pre-ordered this book and was so excited to start reading I could hardly wait! Fairly quickly I realised I would have to dig out my old dusty dictionary to even begin to understand what she wrote (by dictionary I mean google translate). This last sentence is a try to replica her jokes throughout the book. No sentence is complited without a joke (?) at the end. Some jokes were funny but most were not. In the first chapter alone she managed to crack a joke about Adolf Hitler, followed by three more later in the book and a suicide joke. Call me dull but I didn't find those funny at all.
By the description of this book I thought the author would recount tales of her days as an air hostess *in the air*, but I was wrong. She did manage to get some of her "air experiences" in the book, which I found interesting and even funny. Unfortunately she mostly writes about her adventures on land during lay-overs. For me this was a huge disappointment.
I often found myself thinking about other things while reading and had to go back to reread.
The language and how sentences are put together can be confusing for someone who's first language isn't English. In this case google translate is your best friend!
I don't feel I can rate this book with more then 2 stars. It did not capture my full attention, the language was too difficult for me to understand (not the authors fault), but most importantly: I will not remember this book in a few days.

[Eirinn Fenton · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was great to read about aviation during the 80s, so different but so similar to today!