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Here in his own words is the true story of a forgotten American hero: the cowboy who became our first ace and the first pilot to fly the American colors over enemy lines.
Written in 1961 and never before published, Horses Don't Fly is a coming of age story and a rare piece of Americana. Libby's memoir of his cowboy days in the last years of the Old West will remind readers of Cormac McCarthy's Border Trilogy - but it's the real thing. His description of World War I combines a rattling good account of the air war over France with captivating and sometimes poignant depiction of wartime London, the sorrow for friends lost in combat, and the courage and camaraderie of the Royal Flying Corps. From breaking wild horses in Colorado to fighting the Red Baron's squadrons in the skies over France, here in his own words is the true story of a forgotten American hero: the cowboy who became our first ace and the first pilot to fly the American colors over enemy lines.
Clayton Reynolds, author of Franklin's Crossing and Players
Frederick Libby has a marvelous capacity for recalling specific details of his life as a horseman, aviator, soldier, and consummate citizen of the 20th century. His recollections stimulate anyone whose imagination takes free range and soars back over the past hundred years. W.E.B.GRIFFIN, author of Brotherhood of War, The Corps, Men At War and Honor Bound Series.
The long overdue publication of Capt. Libby's memoir is a great event. His achievements spanned generations of American life, from his early ranching years to his legendary WWI flying career and his continuing work in aviation. More than a cowboy or a flying ace, Capt. Libby was a genuine American hero. Winston Groom, author of Forrest Gump
Told in an often humorous voice in a pure American vernacular, Horses Don't Fly is, not only an important piece of previously unpublished history, but a gripping and uplifting story to read.
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