Product Description

One dark night on the island of Great Saltee, fourteen-year-old Conor is framed for a terrible crime he didn’t commit. Thrown into prison by the dastardly Hugo Bonvilain, Conor is trapped in a seaswept dungeon and branded a traitor. He must escape and clear his name; he wants his old life back – his family, his friends . . . and his princess. Conor knows there is only one way out. It’s an impossible task, which has never been done before. But Conor is determined to do it. He’ll have to fly. Swashbuckling new fiction from the amazing Eoin Colfer, ideal for readers aged 11+.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #35352 in Books
• Published on: 2009-01-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 432 pages

Review
Praise for Airman: 'Swashbuckling high adventure . . . His strongest work yet' – Guardian 'Better fun than this will be hard to come by' – The Times 'A classic swashbuckling adventure' – Irish Independent Review Praise for other books by Eoin Colfer: 'Wickedly brilliant' – Independent (on Artemis Fowl) 'As ever, Colfer's story rattles along at a tremendous pace with a cast of eccentric and explosive characters' – Guardian (on The Supernaturalist) 'Unputdownable' – Irish Times (on Half Moon Investigations)

About the Author
EOIN (pronounced 'Owen', by the way) COLFER was born and raised in Wexford, Ireland. He began writing plays at an early age, forcing his unfortunate classmates to dress up as marauding Vikings when they would have preferred to be outdoors doing some marauding of their own. As an adult Eoin continued to write and he is now the international bestselling author of the incredible Artemis Fowl series. He has also written the brilliant Half Moon Investigations, several Legend Of . . . stories, The Supernaturalist and The Wish List. Airman is his first historical-fiction novel, in which his hero Conor takes to the skies. Eoin lives in Ireland with his wife, two sons and an overactive imagination.

Customer Reviews

Eoin Colfer reaches new heights!

I have just finished reading Airman, and I must say, what a read! Colfer has proved that he is more than the flippant humour of Artemis Fowl, though he maintains the boyish appeal in this one. It is a thrilling, enjoyable book, with influences of Northern Lights, Jules Verne and Dumas abound; though since this story has an entirely original setting, there is a good smattering of what we might now call "Colfer" within!

Well done to him, and may this book enjoy the success it deserves!

The boy who could fly
Eoin Colfer is one of my favorite authors when it comes to children's books (make that young adult books) and I love the Artemis Fowl series and Half Moon Investigations. Airman was obviously and instant buy for me no matter what it was about. There's no magic or goblins in this one but there is a lot of fun and invention to be had with an alternate Irish history.

The books takes place in the Saltee Islands, which are actually part of Ireland, but are a separate country in book thanks to independence gained through a diamond mine fortune. The islands are a beacon of modern technology (the book is set in the 1880s) thanks to a benevolent king, a genius scientist and imaginative child named Conor. But when an evil Royal Guard assassinates the king he sets up Conor to take the fall and spend the rest of his life on the island's hellhole prison.

From this point on, the book takes a sort of Count of Monte Cristo twist with Conor assuming a new identity, learning all he can about being a formidable good guy and planning an elaborate escape through the use of manned flight.

It's very fasted-paced and you'll be unable to put the book down. Colfer's love of the Irish countryside and history is obvious once again, I can just imagine him out for a stroll deciding to use some enchanting little place he has discovered. The door is left open for a sequel of sorts, but I think it's just more of a deliberately ambiguous ending since tying up all loose ends would involve too much exposition. My second favorite non-Artemis Fowl book next to Half Moon Investigations.

Colfer in history
The story of Conor Broekhart brings a new twist to the history of flight. Colfer brings the excitement of discovery, the tears of betrayal and hope of redemption to life with this book. I liked Conor's stay on Little Saltee best. I guess it was Conor's ability to keep hoping that impressed me the most.

I've liked all of his books thus far, and this book is no exception to that rule. Colfer's style of writing is highly readable and enjoyable.