Eagle in the Sky

Name: Eagle in the Sky
Rating: 4.4 (5012 reviews)

by Wilbur Smith

First published 1974

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4.4(5,012)

David Morgan rejects the business career planned by his wealthy South African family and devotes himself to flying. In Israel he falls in love with Debra Mordechai and uses his experience with Mirage aircraft to join the Israeli air force. David’s combat experience belongs to the modern Arab–Israeli wars, while the later African sections show how political violence follows both characters beyond the battlefield.

Combat, terrorism and personal injury transform both David and Debra. Their relationship continues between Israel and southern Africa as the Arab–Israeli conflict, disfigurement and conservation work force them to reconsider identity and sacrifice. The novel is historically anchored enough to retain the Arab–Israeli Conflict relationship, though a dedicated Yom Kippur War context would describe its chronology more accurately.