ABOUT THE AUTHOR AND HIS TIMES
Born in England in 1893, W. E. Johns was the son of a tailor and the grandson of a butcher but his wish from an early age was to be a soldier. A veteran of the famous battles at Gallipoli and Macedonia in the infantry, he was commissioned as a pilot into the Royal Flying Corps in 1917. He was on a bombing raid over Germany in September of 1918 when his plan was shot down in a dog fight and he remained a prisoner of war until Armistice in November of that year.
HIS STORIES OF BIGGLES GAVE ME COURAGE AND A MORAL COMPASS
Capt. W. E. Johns created piles of adventure stories, many of which were tucked by my bedside as a child for flashlight reading under the covers. His Biggles character inspired my love of aviation and WWI air battles. These stories are fantastic tales of heroism and strength and that unabashed bravery so typical of British war heroes. Filled with villains and enemies, pirates and flying machines, these wholesome books for children provide just the right amount of action and mystery.
These are wonderful stories to share with your children. I woul assume that boys will love them more, but I was that girl who lived and breathed fighter pilot heroes as a child so your daughters might enjo them as well. In fact he even wrote stories to inspire girls in his Worrals series is all about a young female flight officer.
SOME OF WHAT CAPT. W. E. JOHNS WROTE
- Biggles Series
- Steeley Series (former First World War pilot and crime-fighter Deeley Montfort Delaroy, aka “Steeley”)
- Worrals Series (WAAF Flight Officer Joan “Worrals” Worralson)
- Gimlet Series (Captain Lorrington “Gimlet” King)
- 10-volume science fiction series (the interplanetary adventures of Captain Timothy “Tiger” Clinton, his son Rex, and Professor Lucius Brane)
AND NOW, THE LINK PARTY!
FIRST, MY WONDERFUL CO-HOSTS:
AMANDA HOPKINS AT HOPKINS HOMESCHOOL
CHRISTINE HOWARD AT LIFE’S SPECIAL NECESSITIES
DAWN PELUSO AT SCHOOLIN’ SWAG
JENNIFER KING AT A PEACE OF MIND
KIMBERLEY LINKLETTER AT VINTAGE BLUE SUITCASE
KRISTEN HEIDER AT A MOM’S QUEST TO TEACH
LORI HOOTEN AT AT HOME: WHERE LIFE HAPPENS
WENDY ROSS AT LIFE ON CHICKADEE LANE
YVONNE BILLIAN AT THE LIFE WE BUILD
NOW, THE RULES (DON’T WORRY, THEY ARE REALLY SIMPLE):
- Write a blog post and then hop over to the linkup and add your post!
- Grab a blog button for your post.
Blogging Through The Alphabet Link Party
Instructions: Select all code above, copy it and paste it inside your blog post as HTML
3. Take some time to read the other great posts if you have the time and spread some encouragement and appreciation with a comment or two!
Together we can help each other increase our traffic, read some interesting tips and ideas, and spread some good cheer that will help us start off our weekend!
2 Responses
I wonder if this is the Biggles I hear about in some British TV shows – I never really got what they were talking about.
Gallipoli – wow…that was a tough place.
i need to see if I can find that world war 1 series.