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The Aviator and the Showman: Amelia Earhart, George Putnam, and the Marriage that Made an American Icon
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About This Book
The riveting and cinematic story of a partnership that would change the world foreverIn 1928, a young social worker and hobby pilot named Amelia Earhart arrived in the office of George Putnam, heir to the Putnam & Sons throne and hitmaker, on the hunt for the right woman for a secret flying mission across the Atlantic. A partnership—professional and soon otherwise—was born.The Aviator and the Showman unveils the untold story of Amelia's decade-long marriage to George Putnam, offering an intimate exploration of their relationship and the pivotal role it played in her enduring legacy. Despite her outwardly modest and humble image, Amelia was fiercely driven and impossibly brave, a lifelong feminist and trailblazer in her personal and professional life. Putnam, the so-called "PT Barnum of publishing" was a bookselling visionary—but often pushed his authors to extreme lengths in the name of publicity, and no one bore that weight more than Amelia. Their ahead-of-its time partnership supported her grand ambitions—but also pressed her into more and more treacherous stunts to promote her books, influencing a certain recklessness up to and including her final flight. Earhart is a captivating figure to many, but the truth about her life is often overshadowed by myth and legend. In this cinematic new account, Laurie Gwen Shapiro emphasizes Earhart's human side, her struggles, and her authentic aspirations, the truths behind her brave pursuits and the compromises she made to fit into societal expectations. With a trove of new sources including undiscovered audio interviews from those closest to Amelia, Amelia and George presents her as a multifaceted woman—complete with flaws, desires, and competitive drive. It is a gripping and passionate tale of adventure, colorful characters, hubris, and a complex and a vivid portrait of a marriage that shaped the trajectory of an iconic life.
Reviews
"While certainly presenting a new perspective on Earhart, Putnam emerges as a stronger character and someone deserving of his own dedicated biography."
"Amelia's feminism, her pacifism, and her progressive politics come through loud and clear in Shapiro's account, refreshing in contrast to the right-wing proclivities of her fellow iconic flier, Charles Lindbergh ..."
"Earhart comes off as a more complicated figure in the narrative ..."
"This nuanced reprisal of Earhart's life certainly tarnishes her reputation, but thereby makes her saga all the more captivating."
"Painstaking details ..."
"Shapiro's tone is conversational, luring us into a rich story about American media ..."
"Shapiro argues, both Earhart and Putnam harbored a reckless streak that led them to play down several risks such as the aircraft's lack of adequate radio equipment."
"And a more attentive editor might have pruned digressions about, for example, Newfoundlanders' favorite foods, the carved wooden chest George gave Amelia and the couple's attendance at movie premieres."
"Sprawling, cinematic ..."
"She exposes all sides of their interlocking personalities, virtues and failings."
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