Circling the Sun by Paula McClain is my favorite kind of book. Historical fiction about a fascinating woman ahead of her time, in this case Beryl Markham, the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic. Beryl is English born, then brought to Kenya as a young child. Her mother returns to England after only two years and when she is five she is left alone with her father who raises racehorses and owns a farm. It is a wild and free life.

If you liked Out of Africa, you will love this book. Beryl becomes fast friends with Denys Finch Hatton and Karen Blixen who are the center of Isak Dinesen’s novel, and appear here as well. A great read, full of romance and adventure.