The boy who couldn't fly by Charles Spain Verral
The boy who couldn't fly by Charles Spain Verral is a short adventure story for young readers written in the late 1930s. It follows a determined, physically disabled teenager whose passion for aviation is tested by ridicule and danger, ultimately proving his skill in the air. The likely topic is courage and competence in aviation overcoming prejudice and fear. Dan Sutherland, who wears a leg brace and secretly trains himself using a
homemade cockpit called the Night Hawk, longs to fly despite his banker father’s opposition. Show-off classmate Jerry Blackwell flaunts a new Ross Comet, mocks Dan publicly (even via a humiliating school paper piece), and goads him into a stunt flight meant to scare him. Jerry’s reckless maneuvers culminate in a botched loop and a tight spin; panicking, Jerry bails out with his parachute. Alone at the controls, Dan draws on his self-taught drill, coolly executes proper spin recovery, and lands safely to the crowd’s astonishment. Jerry flees in disgrace, while Dan’s father—who reveals his own past aviation tragedy—recognizes his son’s ability and pledges full support for proper flight training and, in time, a real “Night Hawk.” (This is an automatically generated summary.)
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About this eBook
| Author | Verral, Charles Spain, 1904-1990 |
|---|---|
| Title | The boy who couldn't fly |
| Original Publication | Chicago, IL: Ziff-Davis Publishing Company, 1938. |
| Series Title | Produced from the December 1939 issue of Air Adventures magazine. |
| Credits | Prepared by volunteers at BookCove (bookcove.net) |
| Language | English |
| LoC Class | PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature |
| Subject | Short stories |
| Subject | People with disabilities -- Fiction |
| Subject | Teenage boys -- Fiction |
| Subject | Aeronautics -- Fiction |
| Category | Text |
| EBook-No. | 78136 |
| Release Date | Mar 8, 2026 |
| Copyright Status | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 319 downloads in the last 30 days. |
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