Arthur Hailey's "Airport": summary, reviews, reader reviews

2024 Author: Sierra Becker | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-26 03:40

Writer Arthur Haley was a true innovator who created a number of works in the production novel genre. Based on the book "Hotel" in 1965, the series was filmed, in 1978 "Reloaded", the film of the same name based on the book by Arthur Haley "Airport" was released in 1970. His works have been translated into 38 languages with a total circulation of 170 million. At the same time, Arthur Hailey was disarmingly modest, he refused literary merit and said that he had enough attention from readers. His books were very popular and consistently became bestsellers.

Who is Arthur Hailey?

The writer was born in April 1920 in Luton, England. Arthur Hailey's father was a factory worker, and the mother of the future writer really wanted her son to get a good education. At the age of 14, he was forced to leave school, because his parents had nothing to pay for his further education, but the coursesArthur Haley managed to finish typing and shorthand. He wanted to become a pilot and signed up for the Royal Air Force.

Due to insufficient education, the command did not satisfy his request. However, after some time he managed to get an officer's rank, and he was sent to Canada for training. Arthur Hailey became a pilot, served in India, served in London during the war, at the headquarters of the Ministry. After the war he moved to Canada. He really liked the country when he was training. He got a job working in a magazine, and met Sheila, a stenographer. They got married and lived together for over fifty years.

The beginning of creativity

In addition to his main job, Haley wrote plays and screenplays. The first play "Runway" was put on TV, and it was a great success, which spurred Haley's career as a playwright. After his success on TV, he decided to try his hand at writing, and began writing action-packed novels. "Airport" by Arthur Hailey glorified its author to the whole world, we will dwell on this book in more detail. The writer died at 84 in November 2004.

What does he write about?

From the first steps in journalism, Arthur Hailey found the ingredients of success. What distinguishes his book from stencil action films is the versatility of the image, an attempt to combine intrigue with a discussion of social issues. But it was not so much that attracted readers to Haley's books as scrupulous detail. But critics and writers in their reviews of Arthur Hailey's "Airport" wrote that the author in each book provescraftsmanship, balancing between technical details and a compelling story. Most famous novels:

• "Overload" (1979) - here the author reveals to the reader the intricacies of the energy industry. On the pages of the book, the reader gets acquainted with the hero of the novel, the manager of a large energy company, recognizes him as a professional. Nim Goldman will have to solve serious problems, to cope with the crisis. The book is interesting not only because it introduces the secrets of energy, but also about the personal life of the manager.
• "Hotel" (1965) - the book draws you into the seething stream of life from the very first lines. The slightly old-fashioned St. Gregory Hotel opens its doors to the reader, inviting them to become not only a guest, but also a cog in this huge mechanism. The author, slowly, introduces different aspects of the life of the hotel. But not everything is so simple. There are many pitfalls hidden behind the majestic walls of the hotel.

Other books

• The Final Diagnosis (1959) is a novel about a hospital and its everyday life. The struggle for life, death, different people, destinies. The book is full of events, everything happens rapidly in it, different characters - patients, patrons, doctors, administrators. Everything happens quickly, the events in the novel are superimposed on one another. The book is very fast-paced with realistic stories and is definitely emotional.
• "Changers" (1975) - in general, the novel is not bad, although it is inferior, as readers write in their reviews, to Arthur Hale's books "Airport", "Hotel", "Reboot". Here the author introduces the reader tothe banking sector. It all starts with the fact that the owner of the bank reports that he is terminally ill. Naturally, the struggle for a place under the sun immediately begins. In the face of two heroes, opposites collide: one cares exclusively about profit, the second only about justice.
• Evening News (1990) will talk about how news releases work. In Airport, Arthur Hailey surprised the reader with breathtaking details. The author is a pilot himself in the past, what's so surprising about that? But no, in each of his books he thoroughly knows what he writes about. So in the Evening News, he reveals in detail many little things about television. The action of the novel takes place in the 90s, people live in the illusion of complete security. In those years, terrorism was not heard. It's amazing that Haley was able to see one of society's biggest problems and write about it long before it became a reality.

How does he write?

Arthur Hailey developed and perfected a new and hugely successful novel writing style. Whether he writes about doctors or pilots, hotels or airports, government or industry, he follows his own formula. Each of his novels is filled with a we alth of information, which speaks to the exhaustive research carried out by the author to satisfy the most fastidious reader, which is confirmed by their numerous reviews. Arthur Hailey's "Airport" is the best example of the author's skill. A complex web of plots will satisfy every reader looking for a good andinteresting story.

The author said that before starting to write a novel, he spends a year doing research that might come in handy. Critics emphasized that Haley writes his books with skill. The narrative in his works is smooth and, at the same time, very dynamic. Events are developing rapidly, but the information that he tells the reader is very interesting and makes you think about a lot.

Heroes of books by Arthur Hailey

Often the author breaks the flow of the narrative to insert some research, security records, technical details, as in Arthur Hailey's book "Airport", a summary of the novel below. The author is forced to do this in order to manage all his characters, and he always has a lot of them. The focus of the novel shifts from one character to another, the author temporarily leaves the characters, then returns to them again. The characters themselves are simple, typical, that you can easily meet them in everyday life.

What is the novel "Airport" about?

Arthur Haley's book was published in 1968, and with it Haley came to worldwide fame. The action of the novel takes place in Chicago at an airport fictional by the author during the worst snowstorm, unprecedented in the history of the city. The author shows the reader the work of a large airport, the people who ensure its continuous operation. Hayley keeps the reader on their toes as the plane got stuck in the snow and blocked the runway, causing an air emergency.

But ordinary people work here, the transatlantic airliner is about totake off with a bomb on board, passengers rage against excessive noise, an air traffic controller plans suicide, and a flight attendant discovers she is pregnant. The extraordinary book "Airport" by Arthur Hailey opens up a new world to the reader. Today, almost everyone has flown on an airplane and knows firsthand what an airport is: crowds, scurrying passengers; smiling staff who are always ready to help everyone; the brilliance and beauty of many shops.

But it's the appearance, and behind it is intense, responsible and hard work.

Who is the main character of the book?

The book's central character is former military pilot Mel Bakersfeld, now an airport manager. A snow storm put all the worries on his shoulders, from clearing the strip to a rally in a neighboring city, the noise of aircraft interferes with the townspeople. Everyone wants something from him: starting with his wife and ending with subordinates and passengers. Readers of the book "Airport" by Arthur Haley, write in the reviews that Mel is a real hero. Everyone demands that he immediately solve problems, and no one wants to understand what responsibility he bears on his shoulders.

He oversees the already accurate and timely work of the staff that ensures the smooth operation of the airport. But if Mel could only imagine that at this very moment, a man broken by life is sitting in his apartment and making a bomb, which he will soon take on board the plane. From this very moment, events unfold at lightning speed, with every second the tension grows. How to prevent a disaster if the planealready in the air? The endurance of those people who found themselves in this situation can only be envied. A day in the life of an airport. Arthur Hailey managed to show that in a few hours, many understood who really is who.

Worth reading?

Arthur Haley's "Airport" will not leave anyone indifferent. Lots of storylines, relationships, characters. Heroes courageous, strong, thirsty, such as Mel Bakersfeld. Heroes broken by circumstances or life, who are faced with a choice - to get rid of painful memories or live on, alone and misunderstood. Heroes who love and want to be loved, who love life and want to leave a piece of themselves on earth.

But there are people who turn their lives and the lives of those around them into an absolute hell. They are hungry for profit, they want recognition in society, they try to satisfy their vanity, to solve material problems at the cost of the lives of other people. Should I read Arthur Hailey's books? In "Airport", and other books, the author raises moral, ethical and social issues that concern each of us. Perhaps the most important thing that the author wanted to draw his attention to is humanity, respect for each other, the declining value of human life in our eyes. This is something everyone needs to think about and definitely a must read for everyone by Arthur Hailey.