On the Wings of Flying Tigers follows a Florida farm boy turned pilot who goes from rural poverty into the morally uncertain skies of prewar China, where choosing to act may matter more than choosing sides. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

The almost forgotten history of the Flying Tigers, how they began our unofficial entry into the Second World War.

I used my recollections of a place where I had lived for several years, Palatka, Florida, to make the story more lifelike. As writing instructors say, “Write about what you know.” This farm town launched my story. 

What boy doesn’t marvel at his first sighting of a prop plane sputtering overhead? I, too, held that fascination, but unlike my main character, I did not pursue that curiosity into a lifetime career. I chose instead the study of microbes that led to my becoming a pathologist. It’s a story about early impressions and where they might lead us. 

One of the book’s strongest tensions is moral rather than military. Why did you want to focus on prewar ambiguity instead of clear-cut conflict?

Life is a constant struggle between what is right and what is easy. People are constantly torn between which fork in the road to take. Often lost in the noise of battle is the tenderheartedness of those in the trenches. I chose to focus on this aspect and not create just another story filled with bombs dropping and active trench warfare. 

The book lingers on mechanical, physical details—oil-stained hands, training rituals, engineering problem-solving. Why were those moments important to you?

I felt it was important to transmit the experience of working on these machines, the training involved in getting the skills to put together these marvelous machines, and the constant technical attention to maintaining them to be airborne ready quickly to save lives. The mechanics who work on these fighter planes are unsung heroes.

 What do you hope readers take away about conviction, courage, and responsibility?

I hope my readers take away the understanding that courage and conviction in doing what’s morally right isn’t always easy. One must live with the consequences of one’s choices, which may not be those that were truly right for us at the time. 

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