1. Bibliography
Fleming, Candace. Amelia Lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart. Lettering by Jessica Hische. New York: Schwartz & Wade Books. ISBN 9780375841989
2. Plot Summary
Amelia Lost is a biography which explains how Amelia Earhart became one of the first female aviators. Candace Fleming tells the story of Earhart's life beginning with her childhood and concluding with her final years in her attempt to circumnavigate the globe at the equator--27,000 miles. Fleming focuses on Earhart's personality and character to show readers why this female aviator in the 1920s and 1930s was fearless and beloved in America and around the world.
3. Critical Analysis
Because of the story-like quality of Fleming's writing and the way in which Fleming structures and organizes the information, Amelia Lost will appeal to readers of all genres. Fleming begins the book with Earhart's last radio communication on July 2, 1937, with Itasca, the coast guard cutter which was helping her find Howland Island where she would land and refuel for the last leg of her flight around the world. Throughout the book, Fleming continues to add details about Earhart's disappearance from others who claim they heard her attempting to make radio contact. These stories are sprinkled throughout the book while the majority of the book is a flashback of Earhart's life, beginning with her early years and continuing through her last moments on her fateful trip around the globe's equator. The text is logically and clearly organized to help the reader understand the time periods of Earhart's life. For instance, the first chapter is titled "Little Amelia: 1897-1908" and all other chapter titles are structured similarly with an event title and time frame. Within each chapter the reader will find headings which define the parts of the chapter by the events. Also within each chapter the reader will find a vast amount of interesting photographs of Earhart's life, from her first baby picture to a picture of her as a flight student to a picture of her in the cockpit of the last plane that she ever flew. Additionally, the book contains text boxes on the side of many pages which give the reader a more in-depth look at the life of Earhart and the time period in which she lived. The use of these text boxes gives the reader more information without interrupting the natural flow of the main story.
Fleming's writing style is engaging, and readers will find it hard to put the book down. It is clear that Fleming finds Earhart fascinating. It is also clear that Fleming has done an extensive amount of research for this book. She gathered her information from primary sources like Earhart's own published works, her husband's published books as well as text from Earhart's family and friends. Fleming also conducted significant research about communication and navigation techniques of the 1930s and the role of women in aviation. Direct quotations from all sources are weaved seamlessly into the narrative. In an introduction titled "Navigating History," Fleming admits that "sometimes it's hard to tell fact from fiction," and through her two year research process for this book, she found that much of what we know about Amelia Earhart is myth. In Amelia Lost, Fleming brings the truth about Earhart to life and shows that she was more than just a pilot.
4. Review Excerpts
A Washington Post Best Kids' Book of the Year
An ALA-YALSA Best Book for Young Adults
A Finalist for the ALA-YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults
A Publisher's Weekly Best Book of the Year
A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year
A Chicago Public Library Best of the Best Book
Kirkus Reviews, Starred review: "As revealing as it is entertaining."
Booklist, Starred review: "Fleming so finely tunes Barnum's legendary ballyhoo that you can practically hear the huckersterism and smell the sawdust."
Horn Book, Starred review: “Fleming has mined the wealth of Earhart research to present reader-friendly details, from baby Amelia’s first photo to her 1906-7 report card.... Iconic images and stories about the flier are also included—and sometimes deconstructed—as Fleming describes the behind-the-scenes publicity machine that was working hard to keep Amelia in the spotlight.”
5. Connections
Teachers will find Random House's teacher's guide for Amelia Lost very helpful regardless of what subject they teach. Click on the following link to find ways to incorporate this non-fiction text into your classroom: Teacher's Guide
Other biographies by Candace Fleming:
Fleming, Candace. The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary. ISBN 9780375836183
Fleming, Candace. The Great and Only Barnum: The Tremendous, Stupendous Life of Showman P.T. Barnum. ISBN 9780375841972
Fleming, Candace. Our Eleanor: A Scrapbook Look at Eleanor Roosevelt's Remarkable Life. ISBN 9780689865442
Other books about Amelia Earhart:
Campbell, Mike. Amelia Earhart: The Truth at Last. ISBN 1620060566
Adler, David A. A Picture Book of Amelia Earhart. ISBN 0823415171
Stone, Tanya Lee. DK Publishing: Amelia Earhart. ISBN 0756625521
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