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The Last Blue Mile: A Novel Kindle Edition

by Kim Ponders (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 8 ratings
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18-year-old Brook Searcy has just begun her first year at the Air Force Academy. Abandoned by her mother and raised by a loving yet distant father, Brook has surprised her traditional East Coast family by deciding to enter a completely foreign world -- the military. At the Academy she encounters both friends and terrifying foes, and experiences both first love and terrible loss as her relationships with her fellow cadets grow. Commandant John Waller, a former fighter pilot, has made the Air Force his life for nearly twenty years. His career couldn-t be in better shape, but he finds himself drifting away from his wife and daughters. And when a new (and female) Superintendent who-s never flown a plane becomes Waller-s new boss, he worries that the institution that he-s shaped his life around might be slipping away as well.Over the course of two years, terrible scandals and heartbreaking tragedy touch both Brook and Waller-s lives -- forcing them to make wrenching decisions that will shape both their careers and their lives.

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  1. Print length
    321 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    HarperCollins e-books
  5. Publication date
    October 28, 2009
  6. File size
    1129 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
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  9. Enhanced typesetting
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Air Force Reservist and former fighter pilot Ponders (The Art of Uncontrolled Flight) explores the future of a scandal-plagued Air Force Academy. In the wake of an embarrassing rape scandal, Gen. Susan Long is appointed to reform the academy. Her initiative—a "Culture of Transformation"—causes resentment among cadets and alumni and is opposed by the Commandant of Cadets, Brig. Gen. John Waller, a former fighter pilot whose apt call sign is "Balls." When a cheating ring is exposed, Waller wants to expel Cadet Paula Snowe, the ringleader, but is overruled by Long, who argues that Snowe is "a perfect candidate" for transformation. Meanwhile, Cadet Brook Searcy's future at the academy is threatened by her fragile emotional state. Waller finds himself increasingly at odds with a politically savvy Long, and the death of Brook's friend and fellow cadet in a glider crash forces both Brook and Waller to reckon with their tormented pasts. While Ponders is most eloquent when describing the joys and perils of flight, she also manages to deftly capture the tension between the old and new guards. (June)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author

Kim Ponders grew up near Boston and graduated from Syracuse University. In 1991 she flew with Desert Storm as one of the first American women ever in combat. Her experiences formed the basis of her first novel, The Art of Uncontrolled Flight. Now a speechwriter for the Commander, Air Force Reserve, she lives with her husband and sons in New Hampshire.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B000SEPCEW
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ HarperCollins e-books (October 28, 2009)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 28, 2009
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 1129 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 321 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 8 ratings

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Kim Ponders

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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
8 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Andrea Broomfield
4.0 out of 5 stars Window to Another World
Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2011
Kim Powers' The Last Blue Mile is the kind of novel I love: it has absolutely nothing to do with my work and own writing, and so I can luxuriate in sitting back and indulging in a good read. At the same time, Powers gave me a window into a world about which I know nothing, and so as I read, I learned something. The plot is at times a bit slow, and some of the side stories do not make a great deal of impact. For example, General Waller's intense pains lead to the anti-climax of a gall bladder surgery, although from the profundity of his pain and sacrifices in spite of it, one would think it would at least be a rare, fatal disease. The author handles the parallel stories of Waller and cadet Brook Searcy with ease, and their brief but spectacular meeting at the novel's end is satisfying. Less so is the author's handling of what is billed in the novel as a Culture of Transformation, a new order that is to take place of the old order allowing for the rape scandal that happens before the novel's plot begins. The characters most associated with the Culture of Transformation are thinly developed--particularly Susan Long, Waller's superior. The best part I found was the end, when Brook comes to terms with her mother's desertion of her and Brook's older brothers. Brook's father, via his long letter at the novel's end, comes across as one of the best developed of chacaters, in spite of the fact that he plays such a minor role overall. I would recommend this novel to anyone curious about the Air Force Academy and the life led by military officers in general.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Opposites in Balance
Reviewed in the United States on August 28, 2010
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I'm don't know why there aren't more reviews posted for this novel. Ponders first book drew on her personal experiences with military service and war as effectively as any of her male predecessors in the genre, including Tim O'Brien and Phillip Caputo. Now, with The Last Blue Mile, she enters another masculine stronghold--the novel set in a military academy, and does a much more nuanced job than Pat Conroy did with Lords of Discipline, which had overtones of a Hardy Boys adventure. The power of The Last Blue Mile comes from Ponders' deft balancing of opposites--age and youth, male and female, general and cadet, compliant discipline and rebelious self-assertion, the traditions of yesterday's military and the driving forces of today's. Like the symetical wings of a glider, these juxtaposed forces bear the time-honored themes of honor and duty aloft to be seen in new light. I think Kim Ponder is emerging as one of the important novelists of our time.
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onewac
5.0 out of 5 stars Great novel on women in military
Reviewed in the United States on November 30, 2009
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As a woman veteran, I really enjoy reading novels featuring women in the military,especially when they are written by military women. This was a good book and I had trouble putting it down until I finished it. Hope to see more of her books published featuring women in the military and in kindle format.
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Lesley Hazleton
5.0 out of 5 stars An absolute must-read
Reviewed in the United States on October 20, 2007
Kim Ponders' latest novel could easily be read as a ripped-from-the-headlines book about the Air Force, sexual harassment, and encroaching political influence on the military. But Ponders is far too skilled a writer to remain at so obvious a level. Every time you think you know where the story is going, she lifts it effortlessly into a new dimension, one that soars beyond the obvious, deep into the heart and mind -- indeed, the soul -- of both the Air Force itself and the people in it.
In fact she does indeed write about soaring (part of cadet training), and when she does, even as the gliders rise up into storm clouds, buffeted and all but lost to the earth, her prose is both gripping and lyrical. This same extraordinary blend infuses the whole novel, from the details of daily training to the inner lives of both cadets and officers, and the personal, ethical, and political dilemmas they confront.
If you've never read Ponders before, I envy you reading her for the first time. Read 'The Last Blue Mile,' then read her equally brilliant previous novel, 'The Art of Uncontrollable Flight.' And thank the heavens that despite all the scandals surrounding today's military, people of Kim Ponders' caliber still serve in the Air Force reserves.
3 people found this helpful
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D. Tuszke
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant Novel!!
Reviewed in the United States on May 22, 2007
This is a powerful and touching novel. At first glance I thought I couldn't possibly comprehend Ponders' novel without military background, but she raises difficult questions about honor and responsibility of which anyone can relate to.

From this book, I discovered the reality of religious and sexual politics in the military. I was surprised to grasp the ways religion can affect a military and cause uncertainty and doubt amongst its leaders and soldiers.

I have come to appreciate the grueling training our military forces endure, as well as the difficult decisions a military general like Waller must face to keep his ranks in line. This novel has given me a new awareness of the difference between how a war is perceived and what it truly represents.

Ponders' has truly captured the complexity of life as an Air Force cadet and I'm honored to recommend The Last Blue Mile to anyone fascinated with the military world and those who just want to devour a brilliant novel.
9 people found this helpful
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