Ten Flying Tigers titles worth owning

The Lady and the Tigers: Remembering the Flying Tigers of World War II (Olga Greenlaw; edited by Daniel Ford)

New edition of Olga Greenlaw's 1943 memoir of the American Volunteer Group, with the real story of where the Greenlaws came from and what happened to them after their year with the AVG. You can get an autographed copy from the webmaster. Also available in e-book format. [MORE]

Flying Tigers: Claire Chennault and His American Volunteers, 1941-1942 (Daniel Ford)

The definitive history of the AVG, revised and updated. First published by Smithsonian Institution Press in 1991 and now available as a quality paperback from HarperCollins. You can get an autographed copy from the webmaster. [MORE]

AVG Colors & Markings (Terrill Clements)

The last word (maybe) on how those "sharks" were decorated, in another of those handsome paperbacks from Osprey. [MORE] Also available at Historic Aviation

Tale of a Tiger (R. T. Smith)

I've always thought that R.T. Smith's facsimile diary was one of the best books about the Flying Tigers. Many photographs too. R.T. published the book himself and used to sell it at airshows and by mail. Now out of print, but his son still has some copies, which you can order directly from him.

A Flying Tiger's Diary (Charles Bond & Terry Anderson)

Another excellent first-person account by an AVG ace, this one with a bit of historical perspective by a historian-collaborator, and probably edited a bit for publication. One of the more serious of the Tigers, Bond rejoined the army with a coveted "regular" commission and stayed on to earn a general's star. Also available at Historic Aviation

Black Sheep One: The Life of Gregory "Pappy" Boyington (Bruce Gamble)

A superlative biography of one of the best and most troublesome American pilots. Before he became immortal as one of the Black Sheep, Greg Boyington was a Flying Tiger, and Bruce Gamble's account of Pappy's AVG year is a neat snapshot of the group from one man's viewpoint. [MORE]

P-40 Warhawk Aces of the CBI (Carl Molesworth)

The AVG Flying Tigers are pushed to the background in this volume. However, it contains Osprey's usual glorious color side-views (including Bob Neale's Number Seven) and AVG victory credits have been corrected by using Frank Olynyk's research. [MORE] Also available at Historic Aviation

Into the Teeth of the Tiger (Don Lopez)

A fine book, by one of the young U.S. Army pilots who made up the 23rd Fighter Group that replaced the AVG. Originally published in the Bantam War Books series, now a quality paperback from Smithsonian Institution Press. Also available at Historic Aviation

China Pilot: Flying for Chennault During the Cold War (Felix Smith)

Here's a feast for readers who can't get enough of the man who led the Flying Tigers, the 14th Air Force, and the cargo line that became Air America. Beautifully written--a real classic. [MORE] Also available at Historic Aviation

Remains (Daniel Ford)

A novel about the American Volunteer Group: Fitz, Blackie, their Anglo-Burman and English girlfriends, and a Japanese suicide pilot cross paths in Rangoon. "You can't beat remains, kid," says a U.S. Army graves-registration officer. "They tell the story every time." You can get an autographed copy from the webmaster. Also available in e-book formats. [MORE]

Fei-Hu: The Story of the Flying Tigers

The very best video about the American Volunteer Group, with interviews not only with Flying Tiger vets but also the Kiwis who flew alongside them and the Japanese who flew against them, plus lots of home movies. [MORE] The link is to the DVD at Historic Aviation. Also available in VHS format.