Very strange book, but the pictures are beautiful. It's a short story account of a man flying in an ultralight flying machine. The pictures at first are very small and in the center crease of the book making it hard to see them or at times know what they are of, but eventually the pictures grow and finally fill the pages. I don't think I would recommend this book unless you are someone who wants to fly in an ultralight. Some of the pictures are nice though ( )

Eggers’ account of a one hour flight in an ultralight airplane is inspiring and entertaining, and with pictures he took from beginning to end, the reader really understands the experience. An ultralight is “like a hang glider carrying a three-wheeled motorcycle”, which invites humor and perhaps awe, and Eggers telling the story via an imagined conversation with someone asking him about it was clever. The way he increases the size of the photos gradually as he gets up into the sky was as well – and both shows his ‘eyes opening’ to the majesty of the aerial views, an artistic touch, as well as helps him avoid resemblance to a banal picture book. I liked the organic feel to the book, the humor, and the ending. Worth looking for. ( )

A short story written in the form of a conversation, about the author's first experience flying in an ultralight aircraft.

At first, the style seems informally poetic, a little bit unassuming. But then, it rapidly becomes so vivid that the reader practically feels that they've had Eggers' experience themselves. Impressively done.

The story is available free online: http://www.afar.com/magazine/understanding-the-sky

(I hear this book is incomprehensible, though: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3285057) ( )