“The most intrigu­ing part of Amelia Earhart’s life is often thought to be the way it end­ed. A mys­te­ri­ous dis­ap­pear­ance and an unsolved res­cue mis­sion is a pow­er­ful sto­ry on its own. But Flem­ing digs deep­er and shows read­ers why everyone—from young girls who looked up to her to the First Lady of the Unit­ed States—cared so much for this dar­ing woman pilot. Chap­ters alter­nate between the days sur­round­ing Earhart’s fate­ful crash and her growth from child to trail­blaz­er. The nar­ra­tive shifts could have been mad­den­ing, for sus­pense rea­sons alone, but a rhythm is estab­lished and the two plot­lines grace­ful­ly fold into the con­clu­sion. The author also astute­ly reminds read­ers that Earhart had a pub­lic image to uphold and “took an active role in mythol­o­giz­ing her own life,” so even excerpts from Earhart’s pub­lished works can nev­er be com­plete­ly trust­ed. Hand­writ­ten notes, pho­tos, maps and inquis­i­tive side­bars (What did Earhart eat dur­ing flight? Toma­to juice and choco­late.) com­plete this impec­ca­bly researched, appeal­ing pack­age. A stun­ning look at an equal­ly stun­ning lady.” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review)