Flying Tiger Ace: The story of Bill Reed, China’s Shining Mark

An excellent book! Carl Molesworth combines his encyclopedic knowledge of the American Volunteer Group and the Chinese-American Composite Wing with excerpts from Bill Reed's letters to his mother throughout his military career. So I learned about the operations of the AVG and the CACW, and was also emotionally drawn in by the letters.

I would like to commend Carl Molesworth on his outstanding new book about Flying Tiger ace Bill Reed. Reed resigned his commission in the U.S. Army Air Forces to serve in Claire Chennault’s famed American Volunteer Group—the original Flying Tigers—in 1941 and ‘42 and later returned to China as a squadron commander in the Chinese-American Composite Wing. Molesworth has been writing about the World War II air war in China for over thirty years now and his deep familiarity with the subject is apparent from the very first page. He is a careful researcher who conscientiously presents the full scope of information available, especially when dealing with historical controversies. Readers familiar with Molesworth’s other books will find Flying Tiger Ace a much more intimate view of the war, immersing the reader in Reed’s heartfelt and detailed letters to his mother, intermittent journal entries, and combat reports. In most unit histories, characters like Reed come across as two-dimensional patriotic cutouts. Now, Molesworth paints the man in his full complexity, including his struggles as a man, a son, and a leader. I highly recommend the book to anyone interested in the Flying Tigers, World War II, or aviation history.

Couldn’t put this book down. It’s an interesting life’s story of a WW-2 fighter ace who sadly didn’t quite make it to the en I’d the way. Many harrowing experiences. Great read...

Bill was a hometown boy. Saw him during a bond drive in WWII. Not only a good pilot, but very loving kid to his Mom!!

Great biography about a great fighter pilot with many of his letters to his Mom.

Excellent cover of the history of The Flying Tigers and a great story of a young pilot who died too soon.

Excellent story and well writtenI learned a lot about that part of WWII

I wanted to read this because my mother grew up in Marion, Iowa, and went to high school with Bill Reed. She had a major crush on him. I still have her newspaper clippings from the Cedar Rapids Gazette back during WWII.

I thoroughly enjoyed this read for its story of a pilot in the AVG who then returned to China to fight with the US airforce.This definitely a must read