Austin in the Great War (book on ballooning)

[Beholden to Dad]

Observation Balloons in World War One

Books on observation ballooning in WWI are rare. It took ten years of research and writing, but it’s finally ready: I’m pleased to announce the publication of Austin in the Great War: a Nebraska Farm Boy in the 12th Balloon Company.

This book focuses on my father’s experiences in the 12th Balloon Company (commanded by Ashley C. McKinley), the most decorated of any balloon company to have come under fire on the Western Front. However the book also contains much information that applies to other balloon units, especially the other companies in V Corps (6, 7, 8, 12, and 43).

The Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum Library has just requested Austin in the Great War. The San Diego Air and Space Museum library now has it on its shelves, and the National WWI Museum and Library in Kansas City has carried it since last summer.

It has received glowing reviews on Amazon:
Austin in the Great War: A Nebraska Farm Boy in the 12th Balloon Company

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I will be pleased to answer such questions as I can, commensurate with what knowledge I’ve acquired and the demands on my time.

Robert Eugene Johnson
Author, Austin in the Great War (2018)
The historian will tell you what happened;
the novelist will tell you what it felt like. --- E.L. Doctorow (Time, 6-26-2006)