This book is as good as its subtitle, From Boomerangs to Blackhawks. The physics of rotating airfoils is a very subtle and demanding discipline, one that has appealed to inventors from the days of Da Vinci at least, that took until the middle of the last century to approximate success. Helicopters are vastly inefficient, ridiculously hard to control and massively un-instinctive to pilot, but they will do a few things that no other aircraft will even attempt. .... Chiles relates all this history with enthusiasm and clarity, managing as good an explanation of the aerodynamics, construction and control of helicopters as could be expected in a popular work. He is especially good at concise biography, whether of Sikorsky, autogiro developer Juan de Cierva, or of unknown brush, mountain rescue or medevac pilots.
- Winston Salem Journal
… I've always been fascinated with that flying machine. Apparently, I'm not alone. James Chiles, a trained copter pilot and author, writes that the first drawing of a helicopter goes back well over 20,000 years (a particular weapon design) and that engineers and inventors long dreamed of such a machine ages before the first working model lifted off in the mid-19th century. Helicopters now are a mainstay of the military and search and rescue, and you can learn about their history and the people who fly them in this informative and readable book. … Illustrations appear throughout this book, which covers "boomerangs to Black Hawks," and the text is supplemented by a historical timeline, copious notes and a 40-page bibliography.
- Cape Cod Times
James Chiles’ "The God Machine" (Bantam, $25) would be a good choice for anyone on your list interested in the history of machines.... a fascinating history of the helicopter from its beginnings in the drawings of Leonardo Da Vinci to the present day.
- Republican Eagle
Author James R. Chiles discusses all sides of
the helicopter in the dramatically titled The God Machine, meticulously
reconstructing the history of the helicopter, from issues concerning
the stability of the vehicle to hopes that one day housewives would fly
about running errands as if in a sky Honda. Chiles weaves a lively mix
of technology, pop culture, and history to tell the tale of the
(sometimes) wobbly, innovative, and creative world of the flying
contraption.
- Minneapolis St. Paul City Pages
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