The God Machine

August 20, 2007
The title of this sprightly history is apt both because of the helicopter's seemingly miraculous ability to float above the earthly realm and pluck mortals from the jaws of disaster, and for the nearly superhuman feats of engineering accomplished in its development. Chiles (Inviting Disaster
) gives an anecdote-studded history of the inspired and eccentric breed of garage mechanics who tamed the helicopter's tendency to tip over in winds, twirl uncontrollably and shake itself to pieces to give us the sturdy, poised aircraft we know today. Gears and aerodynamics don't take over the book. Chiles explores the helicopter's role in history and culture, from its visionary beginnings, when housewives were expected to ferry kids to school in the family chopper, to its heroic age during the Vietnam war, to its present workaday role lifting and hauling, monitoring traffic and car chases, saving victims of flood waters and skyscraper infernos and serving as Hollywood's conveyance of choice for bad guys. Chiles darts about this landscape, sometimes cruising through a lucid narrative of technological development, sometimes hovering awhile to sketch a character study of some “helicoptrian” enthusiast or take in a daring aerial rescue. The result is an engaging blend of pop science and pop culture.

September 15, 2007
Incorporating extensive literary references and interviews, Chiles ("Inviting Disaster: Lessons from the Edge of Technology") chronicles helicopter development from ancient observations of birds and boomerangs in flight to Leonardo da Vincis aerodynamic ideas to modern police, fire, and medical response helicopters. And he reveals how the 1960s dream of commuting by helicopters has evolved into the reality of technologically complex, expensive machines for specialized offshore drilling or remote Alaskan sites. Chiless lively, rambling narrative stretches from early aeronautical concepts through countless design attempts to todays versatile helicopters. Sketches of machine designs enrich the text. More than 20 pages of extensive appendixes and chapter notes are followed by a 40-page bibliography. This book should be in high school libraries to inspire, college libraries to inform, and public libraries to enrich the lives of aviators everywhere. And it should be a required purchase for academic libraries serving engineering or aviation programs and for aeronautical corporation or aviation flight department collections.Jim Agee, Univ. of Northern Colorado Lib., Greeley

Copyright 2007 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 1, 2007
As preparation for writing about the history of the helicopter, Chiles learned to fly the contraption.His appreciation for the difficulty of controlling an aircraft suspended under spinning wings instructively infuses his book. The first part covers the many inventors of the helicopter, and the secondpart narrates the uses of helicopters, related via well-known events in whichthey were vital, such as the U.S. evacuation from Saigon in 1975. The helicopters disputed origins, Chiles explains, arise partly because early inventors tended to be eccentric and secretive and partly because incremental advances blurred a definitive definition of the first helicopter. Suffice it to say, it was airborne in various configurations by the 1930s, which mechanical evolution winnowed to todays dominant shape of a fuselage with main and tail rotors. It never found a consumers market as was dreamed by helicopter entrepreneurs; its expense confined its customers to militaries, public safety organizations, television stations, and the wealthy. Enthusiastic and knowledgeable, Chiles should take off with aviators.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2007, American Library Association.)