Pierre Clostermann byl jedním z těch, kteří hned na první výzvu generála de Gaulla přišli do Anglie, aby po ztracené bitvě vyhráli válku, nebo přinejmenším zachránili čest. Ve čtyřiadvaceti letech byl nejúspěšnějším francouzským stíhačem druhé světová války. Ve své knize vzpomínek vypráví dramatickou historii oněch let, kdy život každou chvíli visel na vlásku. Čtenáře zaujmou strhující popisy bojových akcí, kdy na duševní síle i technické dovednosti v jediné vteřině závisí všechno, a kamarádství mužů, kteří se dovedou jeden pro druhého obětovat bez jediného zbytečného slova.

Google Books: Pierre Clostermann was a Free French fighter ace whose incredible account of the air war over Britain and France has become one of the most famous memoirs of the Second World War. Over the course of five years Clostermann engaged in hundreds of dog-fights, shot down scores of Luftwaffe planes, escorted American bombers on some of the most dangerous raids of the war, and watched many of his friends falling to their deaths in the skies over the Channel. The Big Show contains everything one could wish for in a war memoir: wonderfully observed descriptions of wartime Britain, frighteningly evocative stories of in-the-cockpit action, an amazing cast of characters, and all the drama and bravery of a man fighting a desperate war thousands of feet above the ground.

Amazon: This is absolutely the best fighter pilot memoir of World War II. Pierre Closterman was a Free French fighter ace and his account of the air war over Britain and France has justly become famous. It contains everything one could wish for: wonderfully observed descriptions of wartime Britain, frighteningly evocative stories of in-the-cockpit action, an amazing cast of characters, and all the drama and bravery of a man fighting a desperate war thousands of feet above the ground. An undeniable classic and a true page-turner.

The Big Show was published in 1951 not long after the events it describes. French pilot Pierre Clostermann, who was flying for the RAF, kept a detailed daily diary and claims he made few revisions and thus events are as fresh as the day they happened. William Faulkner called it the finest book of its type from the war, and it sold millions of copies in the 50s. Clostermann comes across as quiet character just doing his job. After the war he earned the accolade "France's First Fighter" from General Charles de Gaulle, he was their number one ace. Nowhere is this said in the book, nowhere is he called an ace or anything special, just a regular guy.

The book is largely made up of combat scenes. They are various: long range bomber escort, dog fights against many German plane types including jets, raids on airports, dodging flak, raids on moving trains, ships, beaches. Hidden facilities, lone-wolf attacks. The descriptions of the violence are intense, but he also keeps an optimistic cheery attitude, life is easy come and go. His seems to have a sixth sense of when to attack and when to stay out of the fracas. He fought four long years on 100s of missions was shot up and down many times. Remarkable story. He lived a long life and took an anti-war stance during the 1991 Gulf War - he made the right move one last time. ( )

I found the ending of this story particularly poignant: the end of the war was a big let-down for the author.