In this gripping story, 16-year-old Kak dreams of flying with the Allied bombers in World War II. Underage but desperate to escape his abusive parents, he enlists in the Canadian Air Force and is soon sent to a squadron in England. But he does not expect the experience to be as harrowing as it becomes. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

After his trilogy of sea adventures (The Wreckers; The Smugglers; The Buccaneers), Lawrence turns to the skies to bring readers a gritty, unglorified picture of what it was like to be a fighter pilot during WWII. As the war rages in Europe, "Kak," a 16-year-old nicknamed for his native Kakabeka, Canada, is so eager to join the Air Force that he lies about his age in order to enlist. His daydreams of becoming a war hero soon turn into hellish nightmares about death as he learns first-hand the risks involved with dropping bombs in enemy territory. With 5% of the men killed on every raid, Kak figures that his chance of surviving the required 30 "ops" are next to zero. The author balances action-packed scenes aboard Kak's plane, B for Buster, with more introspective moments on land as the teen strives to come to terms with a terror he cannot shake. Kak feels calmest when he is with "Dirty Bert," a demoted pilot, whose job now is to take care of the carrier pigeons. Knowing the effects of fear, Bert acts as a father figure, offering Kak consolation, advice and a good luck charm, Percy his prized bird. Although a little slow going in the middle (as death-defying feats dodging enemy searchlights and flak become a matter of routine), the story, as meticulously researched as the author's previous novels, is powerful enough to make audience members re-evaluate their concepts of war and courage. Ages 12-up. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr. 7-12. Set during the spring of 1943, Lawrence's novel is a harrowing account of combat told from the perspective of 16-year-old Kak. Like Jack in Harry Mazer's The Last Mission (1979), Kak lies about his age in order to join the air force. But Jack, a Jewish American, wants to fight Hitler; Kak, nicknamed for his tiny Canadian hometown, just wants to flee his loveless, abusive parents and "like Captain Marvel . . . change [himself] from a boy to a hero." After his first "op," though, Kak is deeply shaken. Bert, who cares for the pigeons, finds a way to comfort the boy by putting a prize pigeon in his care. The dense mechanical specifics of planes and equipment may slow some readers, but the tender lessons of courage that Kak learns from Bert and his bird are captivating. In Kak's young, raw voice, Lawrence writes a gripping, affecting story about the thrill of flying, the terrifying realities of war, and the agony of reconciling personal fears and ideals with duty and bravery. GillianEngberg. From: Syndetics Solutions, Inc. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.