[21] WINGS BY PETE ABLEA ARC REVIEW AND INTERVIEW

WINGS 

by Pete Abela  

(Published May 20th 2012 by Really Blue Books)

"Wings" tells the story of Walt and his grandson Scott, who both have a fierce longing to fly albeit in vastly different circumstances. Walt - who grew up in the depression - found out first hand that becoming a pilot takes sacrifice and tenacity. When World War II broke out he pestered the RAF for eighteen months before they finally accepted him. Scott spent his childhood listening to tales of his Grandfather's aerial exploits and developed an intense craving to be a pilot. However, the number of people wanting to be a pilot vastly outweighs the limited opportunities on offer.
“Wings" weaves together two tales: one set in war-torn northern England, and the other set in the modern-day Illawarra region of New South Wales. As Scott progresses, his grandfather declines – Walt loses his wife, his sight and his hearing – but throughout these difficulties is still there to offer support and encouragement. With insights into the modern aviation scene and life in the Royal Air Force of World War II, this is a must for anyone who has an interest in history, aviation or simply an old fashioned love story.

ABOUT AUTHOR

PETE ABELA 

Pete is an author from the city of Wollongong, just south of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia.For most of his adult life, Pete has been a left-brained computer scientist whose love of reading eventually led him to take up writing. Having surprised himself and those around him by getting Wings published, he’s now having fun dreaming up marketing strategies and publicity stunts – tasks he never could have envisaged doing ten years ago. He continues to stretch the boundaries of his right hemisphere and is now working to complete a second novel.His left brain hasn’t been totally neglected through this process. Pete works as an IT Manager in order to help keep his wife and four kids fed and clothed. When he’s not working, reading, writing or enjoying the company of his family, Pete likes to sneak away for a bit of exercise – either tennis, soccer or a laborious run.

You can find more about Pete at his website and blog (http://peteabela.com). The blog contains a number of really bad jokes. You have been warned. 

Contacting Pete:http://www.facebook.com/PeteAbelaTwitter: @PeteAbelaWebsite: http://www.peteabela.comBlog: http://blog.peteabela.com

REVIEW

Wings is a story about grandfather, grandson and their love of… Flying. The story is divided into two parts, one about Walt and the other one about Scott.

Their words are completely different – Walt used to fight in Word War II, lost his friends and wife. Scott grew up on tales his grandfather told him. He wants to fly too, but even if the opportunities are better, it’s still not easy…

When Pete asked me to review ARC of his book I was worried I won’t like it. I used to read about WWII for school and I hated it. But Wings surprised me a lot! I simply loved this book.

It’s written perfectly and it kept gripping my attention every page. It’s a really calm story but somehow it gave me a lot of feelings and it was hard to put it down.

It won’t make you bored because of war and fights. It’s only a background for the beautiful story about reaching our dreams. If you’re a fan of old fashioned, cute love stories, this book is also or you.

As I already said, I loved this book. I think everyone will find something to love in it.

PUCHARSE LINKS:

- The publisher, Really Blue Books: https://reallybluebooks.com/ebooks/title/12. This site also contains a free download of chapter 1.

- Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Wings-ebook/dp/B0084UZ62U

INTERVIEW

Hello and thank you for being my guest on Disincentive reviews! How came you know so much about flying?

Flying is something I’ve always been interested in. My grandfather was a pilot in World War II and he used to buy me lots of Biggles books when I was a child. My interest in flying started at that point. My brother is also a pilot, so I have learnt a lot from talking to him.

Are you similar to your book characters, always doing everything to make your dreams come true?

In many ways, yes. One of my dreams was to become an author so I’m very pleased that Wings has been published. That has been a dream for a number of years. More generally, I’m interested in goals and dreams, the best way to decide which dreams to chase, and the best techniques to pursue them. I often write about this at my blog.

Scott heard a lot of stories from his grandfather in childhood. What about you? What kind of stories did you listen to?

As I mentioned earlier, I enjoyed reading Biggles books as a child. In fact, I still own a collection of 91 Biggles books. Apart from that, I was interested in reading almost anything I could find. I started with Enid Blyton, but also read Lord of the Rings, the Narnia chronicles and any other interesting looking book that I could get my hands on.

Love in your book is very old-fashioned. It’s lovely! What about your love?

I’m glad you enjoyed that part of the story. It took me a little while to find the one, but I am now married to a wonderful lady and very happy. Although modern day life is very fast-paced and has many challenges, I will be doing everything I can to make this a very fulfilling and long-lasting marriage. That is another one of my dreams which.

Random questions time :) Tell me your favorite joke.

I enjoy puns. One of my favourites is about Mahatma Ghandi.

In his quest for independence, Mahatma Ghandhi wandered the dusty roads of India with no shoes on, which left him with cracked and calloused feet. His minimalist diet was the cause of his tiny – almost fragile – frame and also led to bad breath. However, these physical difficulties didn’t prevent him from developing a genuine spirituality.

Taking note of all these attributes, one of his friends referred to him as a super-fragile, calloused mystic hexed by halitosis.

Do you care about your health a lot?

I do, and I try to make it a priority. Life is busy with work, writing and family but I try to exercise two or three times a week. I play football in a social team and also have a regular game of tennis with one of my good friends. I think it’s good for my mental and physical health to do that.

Thank you for answering!  Anything you’d like to add?

I hope your audience enjoys reading Wings. It was a labour of love to produce, so if anyone has a response or feedback, please let me know. I’d really appreciate hearing from any reader via facebook (facebook.com/peteabela) or my website (peteabela.com).

What do you think?

xoxo, 

disincentive