Happy Independence Day!

Enjoy the holiday and remember the sacrifices made to make this a FREE country.

WINGS: A Novel of WWII Flygirls – Author Interview with Karl Friedrich

We had a fun giveaway not too long ago, of the book “WINGS: A Novel of WWII Flygirls” by Karl Friedrich. We took the opportunity to catch up with Karl and ask him more about the book, his historical perspective, and his involvement with AFullCup.

What inspired you to write this story?

Karl Friedrich: I say at the beginning of the book, “This book is dedicated to every woman who defies convention in order to live her dream.” Certainly the WASP were the epitome of defying convention. Such people have always fascinated me.

They looked like typical young American women – the kind you’d expect to see on a Saturday night in any malt shop during the war years; but they were anything but. For one thing, they all had earned a private pilot’s license. That was a requirement for signing up. A man might never have seen an airplane, and the army would train him to fly. But a woman had to show up already knowing how to fly. Most pilots today still are men. But in 1940s America, women with pilot’s licenses were almost as rare as unicorns.

Such women deserve respect and admiration. And these women wanted to help save the world from tyranny. I felt their story was worth telling.

Cleary, you respect strong, independent women. Is there a special woman in your life that inspired that admiration?

Karl Friedrich: All the women in my family have been strong. That can be both a blessing and a curse. I’ve never been attracted to helpless people. Life here on planet Earth is difficult. Why would any sane person want to be around those whose weakness makes it more so. Certainly not my heroine, Sally Ketchum. She’s so strong that the love of her life, Tex, says her “…willpower was like a steel plow—except that steel plows sometimes break, and so far as anyone knew, she never had.”

A person can be strong as nails, and also loving. Sally is. She’s desperate for love…but on her own terms. She won’t settle for a man who’s weak. And that’s one of her conflicts. She knows what she wants, and she can have it…but only if she’ll compromise.

As a member of AFullCup, what is your favorite thing about the AFullCup website and community?

Karl Friedrich: My wife is the shopper in our family. (Like Sally, she never compromises.) She turned me on to AFullCup, and it was her suggestion that I do a giveaway of Flygirls on the blog. In addition to the exposure that this site has given my book, I love seeing us save money! And she enjoys the sense of community and learning from the members at AFC.

As a history buff and author, what words of wisdom would you share with AFullCup members to help encourage them during these tough economic times?

Karl Friedrich: America has gone through many booms and busts. Most people don’t seem to know that. Many remember the recession during the eighties; and pretty much everyone has heard about The Great Depression. But there have been many more downturns that were terrible, some worse than this one. And we survived.

One of the neat things about this country is that we can fire the politicians that don’t do a good job. And one of the bad things about this country is that – in spite all common sense – some of us don’t.

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Thanks Karl for your insights!

And of course we’d like to remind everyone that using AFullCup to help you save money is an ingenious way to utilize our modern resources in the face of history repeating itself in our economy.

If you have more questions for Karl, especially about his book – whether questions or comments, fan feedback is fun :) -  add your response to this thread: http://www.afullcup.com/forums/reading-room/492697-congrats-thanks-all-who-competed-wings-novel-wwii-flygirls.html