20 Hours, 40 Min: Our Flight in the Friendship

by Amelia Earhart

Commemorating the seventy-fifth anniversary of her first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, the legendary aviator recalls her fascination with the early world of aviation and her 1928 transatlantic flight with Will Stultz aboard the Friendship to become the first woman pilot to accomplish the feat. Reprint.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Aviation, Biography, Memoir, Autobiography, Audiobook

240 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1979

About the author

American aviator Amelia Earhart, the first such woman, flew solo across the Atlantic Ocean in 1932 and from Hawaii to California in 1935. While attempting to fly around the world, she crashed in the Pacific Ocean in 1937 and presumably died, and people never found her.

People note Amelia Mary Earhart, a pioneer and author. Earhart received the Distinguished Flying Cross, award. She set many other records and wrote best-selling books about her experiences; she instrumentally formed The Ninety-Nines, an organization for female pilots.

During a circumnavigation of the globe, Earhart disappeared over the near Howland Island. Fascination with her life, career and disappearance continues to this day. She went missing July 2, 1937, and people declared her dead on January 5, 1939.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amelia_...

Reviews

[Jeff · Rating 1 out of 5]

"20 Hrs. 40 Min. Our Flight in the Friendship", Amelia Earhart, 1928. Amelia Earhart was an incompetent aviatrix and having crashed a half dozen times, mostly during attempts to land or take off, it is quite amazing that she wasn't killed much earlier in her flying career. Hoping to capitalize on the excitement of Charles Lindbergh's solo Atlantic crossing, entrepreneurially spirited Putman Publishing casts Amelia Earhart as the first woman to fly across the Atlantic. Although simply a passenger, Earhart hints of her leadership role. Earhart was not qualified to fly the Fokker aircraft. She was not a mechanic. She had no experience flying multi- engined aircraft or sea planes, nor was she was qualified to fly instruments. She lacked oceanic navigation skills. She had no leadership experience. Although Earhart was a licensed pilot, her contribution to the flight was basically non existent. In the book's first chapters Earhart retraces her early piloting experiences including two interesting events which clearly exemplify her incompetence. "Owing to carelessness in not refueling" she runs out of fuel and crashes on take off. The other incident that she relates to clearly shows poor judgement in the extreme. After becoming lost above a layer of clouds she then intentionally spins the aircraft into the overcast below. The last chapter "Women in Aviation" is interesting, although she fails to what could have been a gracious opportunity, to pay tribute to the woman pioneers that came before her. Pilots such as Harriet Quimby, America's first female pilot, or Betsy Coleman, the first American pilot of African decent. {incidentally both women fell out of their aeroplanes and plunged to their death}. One cannot help but like Earhart. She is honest, adventurous and amiable, but her place in history is undeserved. Films such as Mira Nair's "Amelia" do further harm in rewriting an already false history.

[Mom · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is no wonder Amelia Earhart is among the "Most Important Women". She is awesome. This book shed new light on my impression of her. What an amazing woman. She is known only as a pioneer for women in flight, but there is so much more there. She was a free-spirited, forward thinking person who was before her time. She was also a caring, giving individual who thought of herself as a social worker more than an inspiration to women blazing a trail to aviation. I am finding the pen in the hand of our ancestors to be the most enjoyable reading available nowadays. Their outlook on life is so fresh and new they could be speaking to us here in the present. A very good, fast read.

[Book2Dragon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Warning--this is Not about her Solo" flight over the Atlantic. For most of the book, I thought that I had been duped by history all these years. She made a flight across the Atlantic with two men, but did not pilot at all. This was in 1928. Because she was a woman in that era, it still drew tremendous attention. Quick, do you know the names of the two men who made that flight? She does give them a full page each at the end of the book.
Her Solo flight was in 1932. Quite an extraordinary feat, especially for a woman, which you will appreciate even more after reading this account. Mechanical problems, need for constant concentration and superior skill.
This book that I read was a part of the Adventure series done by National Geographic, edited by Anthony Brandt with an Introduction by the lady with whom she worked in the settlement house, The Denison and the editor. Forward by Amelia herself.
Finally, some points are particularly prescient of her final flight "Disappeared
July 2, 1937 (aged 39) Pacific Ocean, en route to Howland Island from Lae, Papua New Guinea
Status: Declared dead in absentia January 5, 1939 (aged 41)." (Wikipedia-Amelia Earhart)
I look forward to find more books in this series, especially as a lover of history (other than war preferably).
Recommended Read.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was interesting, since it was written by Amelia Earhart, and I had never read anything that she had written. The autobiographical information was interesting, since it has served as the basis for many of the biographies that have been written about her. But at times it's a bit too preachy about the future of aviation and the role that women should play in aviation. I don't disagree with anything that she wrote, and I don't feel that she shouldn't have written these chapters. I just think it's a bit dated now and I didn't have a sufficient level of appreciation for it. The chapters put together from the logbook of the flight, which Amelia herself kept, were also somewhat choppy and difficult to get through. I'm still very glad I read the book, but I think I was hoping for more, especially from the chapters about the trans-Atlantic flight.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I grew up reading biographies of Amelia Earhart as a youngster in the late 60s and early 70s, but I don't think I've ever read anything by her. This I read in an original edition that belonged to my great grandfather and included not only a miniature U.S. flag that was carried in the Friendship on that flight but also clippings about Earhart that he cut out in the early 1930s.

I enjoyed Earhart's sense of humor and her modesty. She was only a passenger on this flight, though as the first female to fly (or be flown) across the Atlantic she attracted the most publicity. Especially fascinating were her descriptions of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, the two places the team stopped en route from Boston to the British Isles.

I also loved her comments on settlement work, which was her other great love. That was news to me--at least as an adult!

[Victor · Rating 5 out of 5]

20 Hrs. 40 Min. is a classic tale of adventure from which the entire world should understand once and for all that flying transcends gender or other such misconceptions.

Amelia Earhart became the first woman to cross the Atlantic by airplane and this is her personal account of that historic flight.

Amelia expresses herself in writing with accuracy, originality, and elegance. I absolutely love her memoirs and I am grateful that such a talented narrator and connoisseur of aviation as Pamela Almand takes me on these unforgettable adventures.

For those of you who don’t know yet, Pamela is an award-winning narrator and former pilot. She is extremely talented, and thanks to an excellent performance in which she manages to capture Amelia‘s Midwest twang, we, as listeners, are treated to a completely immersive narrative experience.

I think that the job of any audiobook narrator is to create a sense that one is inside the story, living it alongside the main character, instead of just looking in from the outside.

Pamela has the skills and the knowledge to do exactly that. Her enthusiasm at the opportunity to perform for us these daring adventures is evident right from the beginning: from the heartfelt introduction written by herself, the good vibes permeate throughout the audio production.

Between the introduction and the actual journey there is a foreword narrated by Karen Commins that also helps shed some light upon Amelia‘s beautiful and noble character.

20 Hrs. 40 Min.: Our Flight in the Friendship: The American Girl, First Across the Atlantic by Air, Tells Her Story springs to colorful and vivid relief in the listener’s imagination as an audio journey thanks to another truly captivating and completely immersive performance delivered expertly by multiple award-winning narrator Pamela Almand.

I highly recommend this audiobook to everyone and anyone who wants to discover new details about the endlessly fascinating Amelia Earhart and to those interested by the history of aviation.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An intriguing look at women in aviation and the pioneering days of flight as seen through the eyes of aviatrix Amelia Earhart. The main event in the book is the 1928 crossing of the Atlantic Ocean aboard “Friendship,” a Fokker F VIIb/3m. Co-pilots Wilmer “Bill” Stultz and Louis “Slim” Gordon were the two men who comprised the rest of the three-member crew. Amelia was not qualified for instrument flight and so did not pilot the plane; her job was to keep the log book for the flight.
Even though she was only a passenger, Amelia gained fame as the first woman to cross the Atlantic Ocean by airplane. [It was a feat she would repeat some four years later, this time piloting her Lockheed Vega 5B for the solo flight.]

Amelia’s log book entries, along with her candid, insightful comments, make for fascinating reading. Although the flight is the centerpiece of the narrative, Amelia also discusses her aviation exploits, her nursing duties during the war, and her social work as she shares her thoughts on the development of aviation and its place in the American way of life. With more than sixty photographs reproduced throughout the book, the reader gains an added insight into the 1928 world in which Amelia lived.

Marion Perkins, the Head Worker at Denison House in Boston, wrote the discerning introduction. Amelia worked at the settlement; she hoped to give the children experiences to keep them young and to help them develop a zest for life.

There is no doubt that Amelia had a zest for life and her bubbly personality shines through in this engaging commentary. Her insightful reflections on aviation and the place of women in that field, born of a 1928 perspective, are interesting, thought-provoking, and perceptive. Since most readers know of the aviatrix’s loss on her round-the-world flight, this charming account holds an unintended undercurrent of poignancy.

Highly recommended.

[Nic · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a quick read, written by Amelia Earhart, concerning her transatlantic flight. She was the first woman to fly over the Atlantic, albeit, a passenger on the flight and not piloting. Still, it was cause for great celebration that a woman was brave enough to be a part of the voyage. Three other women had died, attempting the same feat, as passengers. Flying, especially over the oceans, was incredibly risky then. 1/4 of the book covers the logbook she wrote during this flight on the Friendship, with occasional breaks to interpret her notes. She was often writing in tricky circumstances such as, in the dark, at night. The book is hastily written and that does come through, but she was incredibly busy with many demands of her time, after the flight. How wonderful, though, that she took the time to share this historic flight and some of her thoughts with us.

Isolation breeds distrust and differences of outlook. Anything which tends to annihilate distance destroys isolation, and brings the world and its peoples closer together. I think aviation has a chance to increase intimacy, understanding, and far-flung friendships thus. 144 Amelia Earhart

[Zish · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fun and insightful read! I thoroughly enjoyed Earhart’s writing, honesty, comedy, and self-awareness. She weaves personality and history into this memoir and am delighted she wrote this book.

[Terry Meier · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very interesting read. It is Earhart's log book plus her comments about the adventure of the flight and provides a good view into life in the late 1920's and early development of aviation and women's role in aviation.

[Max · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amelia Earhart tells her story as the *passenger* on the flight across the Atlantic. The last few chapters were my favorites. She tells about the joys of aviation and what it was like to be a female pilot! Short and sweet. Would definitely recommend.

[Roberta Westwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely

I really enjoyed this! Amelia is upbeat, funny and a joy to listen to. She is an excellent writer and knows how to bring her exploits to life. I look forward to reading more of her books.

[Sebastian Harvey · Rating 5 out of 5]

i love amelia earheart

[Marcia Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

The flight from the perspective of the woman who “road along”.

[Karla · Rating 3 out of 5]

First hand account of the historic trans-Atlantic crossing in the Friendship. Earhart's notes about this trip, and on the future of aviation in general are interesting and insightful.

[Chelsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Amelia Earhart, but this was underwhelming for me. It felt too technical. I don’t really know what I was expecting, but this wasn’t it.

[Julia Foster · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very much enjoyed learning more about Amelia Earhart, makes me want to read more books about her.

[Elyssa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m not into aviation but Amelia Earhart has become one of my role models. To have read something written by her was amazing. She was funny, humble, and sweet. It was a piece of history told by America’s most famous aviatrix. I loved it.

The book covers why she got into flying, her journey across the Atlantic, and some aviation statistics. A must read for any history fanatic.

[Carrie Hannigan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amelia is a quirky and fun narrator of her story from her first draw to flying to her flight on the friendship; she also provides commentary on the field in general. Overall, it's an easy and fast read. Before reading the book, I knew she was admirable, but now I have some good reasons why she is admirable and the darling of flight. Although she never graduated from college, her insights and self-reflection are interesting and well-written (though it isn't clear how much editing by the publisher happened, since the publisher was her husband). When teaching this book, I would suggest supplementing it with video clips available on the Internet (as the videos are a good way to see her positive attitude in motion).

[Conrad · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1928, when aviation was just beginning to boom, Amelia Earhart was selected to join pilot Wilmer Stultz and mechanic Louis 'Slim' Gordon on a trans-Atlantic flight to become the first woman to fly across the Atlantic. Although not part of the flight crew, per se, she kept a log and took photographs to document the journey. She doesn't try to claim any of the glory for the flight and gives all the credit to 'the boys' who made it happen. Her log makes up a good bit of the book and her wit and intelligence come through in a very personable way. She was quite amazed and amused by the outpouring of public affection for her through this endeavor. As an appendix to her flight account she adds speculation about the future of aviation - quite interesting from a 1928 perspective.

[Feisty Harriet · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this autobiography covers Amelia Earhart discusses her life as a dedicated social worker helping Chinese and Syrian children in Boston, and how she got into aviation, her progress in accepting women in aviation, and culminates in a detailed description of Amelia Earhart’s cross-Atlantic flight on The Friendship. At the time, it was the first Atlantic crossing made by a woman, but Earhart downplays her passenger role and instead focuses on the talent of the two pilots and the enriching experience of being involved in such a flight. Her tone and words and sentiments are charming and affable and her thoughts about the upcoming role of women both in the world and in aviation are entirely refreshing for the time in which she lived (the 1920′s and 30′s).

[Kate McLachlan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first part was a lot of fun. Amelia Earhart in her own words talking about her first experience with fame. She knew she didn't earn it (was just a passenger on this first flight) and was humble about the experience, and so earnest in her desire to make a difference in aviation and the view of women. Reading it wihle knowing all she accomplished after she wrote the book was pleasant and poignant. Toward the end she got a little much into advocating for change in aviation policies, which I'm sure is what she felt she ought to do with her fame, but it was a bit boring for those of us for whom flying and airports have become so routine they're just an annoying nuisance.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting book that takes you back to the pioneering days of flight. Earhart was on this flight to document it in film and notes yet she became the celebrity even though it was two men who flew the plane across the Atlantic. Just being the first female to cross the Atlantic was enough (three others had died trying). Earhart soloed across the Atlantic five years later. The book includes brief bit on her early years, the preparation, the flight, the future of aviation, women in aviation, and a retrospect. Well worth reading - quick and easy!

[Kate P. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read--Amelia's take on crossing the Atlantic as the first female passenger. This may seem novel now but in 1928 this was a dangerous proposition due to the state of technology available--the planes themselves, limited radio contacts and lack of accurate weather forecasts. She also talks about the budding aviation industry and role of women in it in the last chapters.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

A first-hand account by one of the pioneering aviatrixes of the twentieth-century, Amelia Earhart, of flying across the Atlantic; her account is full of adventure and danger. Even if the original was rushed to publishing to cash in on her fame, it does not diminish the pioneering role she had as a pilot and feminist.

[Leigh Ann Hunker · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, I felt like I needed to expand my horizons from leisure reading to something non-fiction.... guess what I stumbled upon? Interesting. I found out something I did not know at all about Amelia's trip across the Atlantic...bet you can't guess...short, easy read.

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

yes-- everyone knows my amelia obsession and it is still growing.
but listen to me, seriously -- she is a good writer.
she's funny, witty, smart and draws little pictures in the text.

sigh.
i know you are not taking me seriously.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really found it refreshing to get to know her on the personal side a bit more. I was also very impressed by her writing abilities... especially because they rushed her to get this book out in a matter of weeks, without revision.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was interesting from the historical point-of-view, but I especially enjoyed getting to know A.E. Reading her book really helped me to see her love of life and adventure. I also enjoyed reading about her fame through her eyes. She did NOT take herself too seriously!

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the autobiography parts and her telling the story of the crossing. After the crossing, she gets into some history (at the time) and predictions, problems with air travel, etc that is not as interesting.