The book is a collection of anecdotes compiled by the authors, who wrote the anecdotes in their own words. The few times others’ original words were used, the prose was much better because these main writers aren’t real writers.

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This book needs some serious editing: developmental, line, and copy editing. This book has not been seen by editor eyes of any kind. It is an editing virgin. This is a first draft nowhere near ready for publication.

For one, I recommend it be organized by subject: weird passengers, embarrassing moments, dangerous moments, etc. Most of the stories were non-stories, nothing more noteworthy than a random Facebook comment and just as short. But about ten percent were really good.

The writing style is just insufferable. It’s verbose and patronizing and condescending and amateurish:

EXAMPLES
We know you all want to know about the naught, so here we go. Many of you have never had a flight on a 747, but to say it is big, well, a small town could travel on it.

And no, we will not give you any more information on how to find this staircase. Why? Because after you read this, we do not want you getting any ideas!

BUT THEN as I got closer to the infant, I smelled it! What was it? Let’s put it this way, why doesn’t someone change that baby’s diaper. It was awful!

Before computers for the masses and cell phones, yes people had to function without these things, we never knew what the passenger load was going to be.

Now here is a small fact that many of you probably don’t know. Most of the time we never drank in a hotel we were laying over in …

But to make sure that you could not cheat, wait for this … there were actually bars on the outside of the windows of each apartment. Metal bars! Just like prison! [ellipsis in original]

Anyway, back to the mock evacuation: my roommate was positioned at the Convair 880 door, and I might add here that this door was really heavy and you had to throw some weight into it as you opened it. The command to evacuate was given when all of a sudden one of the Air Force One pilots got up and was going to attempt to assist her. Not a good idea on his part!

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The name-dropping was so annoying. The introduction had literally at least 25 ebook pages of names the author was bragging about, most of which I’d never heard of and none of which I actually cared about. I am not the kind of person to be impressed by celebrities unless there is some personal connection, like Will Rogers, who worked with my grandmother in college. Some things were overexplained (we know what a layover is!) and other things never explained (like a lot of airport initials — ORD is not Orlando, apparently).

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It took me months and months (eight) to read this. The writing was so cringe, it was like fingernails on a chalkboard and I literally had to force myself to read it. I think I was offered this book by NetGalley because I had just read Come Fly the World, a much better book about flight attendants. I do not know if this book improved at all since the ARC stage, but I wouldn’t risk it.

This was a such a cool read.
I loved reading stories about the golden age of flying. I have always loved flying so this a great read! Definitely recommend!

I love behind the scences books and this one had some good stories. My only thought was that I thought it got a little long and took me a while to get through. I would read one story at a time. Entertaining though.

A easy to read book about TWA flight attendants. Many mini stories. There's not much of real substance here. If you're fascinated about how things were back in the TWA airlines days or interested in learning more about flight attendants, you will enjoy this read. This is basically a book of personal essays with some fun facts mixed in.

***** I have received and read an e - ARC from NetGalley in exchange for giving my honest feedback. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.*****


I just couldn’t get into it. I finished, but it was a struggle.

The stories needed better editing, for clarity as well as for organization.

I wanted to love this book. However, the stories weren't that juicy and it kinds dragged on. Sadly, it was a do not finish for me.

I really enjoyed the stories that were presented in this book. This is a perfect read for those days where you just want to escape the dramas of real life. I will definitely recommend this story to others.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley.
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This book was... I don't even know how to put it into words. I guess it didn't live up to my hopes for it to start. I personally love books like this or about the medical field where they tell interesting or funny stories about their time in the job. And That's what I thought this would be.
It had some.. okay stories.. but mostly it bored me. I had a difficult time getting through the book in its entirety. The book was disorganized and chaotic in the way it set up the stories and told them at times.
Some of the stories were good enough and kept my interest, but a lot of them just fell flat for me.

It unfortunately is not a book I'd read again.

I have heard much about the golden age of flight with TWA and how flight was an event with only the best people and best offerings. I was interested to read about the actual experiences of the flight attendants and what the job was like from their side. The first thing I noticed was there was not rhyme, or reason to how the stories were organized and this would have made a difference to me as a reader since the stories were directly based on different types of experiences, whether it be celebratory sightings, or what ultimately led to the end of TWA. I had to read this book in spurts for this reason. I thought the stories were well written, but ended up just being a jumble for me. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley.

I enjoy reading true life stories combining that with the fact I have read a few different books about cabin crew/air stewardesses both fiction and non fiction and found those interesting when I saw this one it ticked both boxes!

I do admit when very young looking through those large rose coloured glasses and becoming fascinated with the idea of air stewardesses, it always looked so glamourous. After flying once aged twelve and being terribly air sick I set my rose tinted glasses on becoming a hairdresser, which I actually did. Especially when referred to in books or on the TV. What I have learnt from books such as this one is it isn't all glamour, it's hard work. All the rules and regulations, and specifications the TWA attendants had to meet, the hierarchy of staff on a plane and how the industry has changed over the years. The whole gender bias, the 'customer is always right' ethic and yes theres the seeing different places in the world but theres also the danger not just of plane malfunctions but terrorist attacks too. Then theres if someone is taken ill on the flight, the constantly on your feet with the expectation of not having a hair out if place too.
It was really quite fascinating learning about the glamorous planes with lounges, extra large seats and lots of leg room and their specifications.

This book contains a wide range of real life stories. Individually most are both interesting and informative. Within the stories theres a whole range of emotions, the good, bad, ugly & intoxicated passengers. The famous & celebs. The perks of going to shows/casinos. Then the harsh reality or terrorism, mechanical faults and the deaths of colleagues. I particularly adored the stories of meeting famous people and learning how 'well behaved' and friendly they were with the staff during their flights.

The stories are presented quite well but I found the book a harder read than I expected. It was better as a book to dip in and out of, which I find is pretty true for most non fiction. I guess what I am trying to say is at times it felt like 'hard work' or 'a bit of a chore' rather than really looking forward to reading this one every night. This book is perfect to dip in and out of. Ideal for journeys to & from work or during you tea break. It's not like a biography, memoir or 'diary' or book to sit and read in one go.

I think I wanted to learn more about the women featured in the book. I felt the book needed a more 'personal' angle. Having said that I did enjoy reading the book and will continue reading other books similar to this one.

I was lucky to receive an advance copy of True Tales of TWA Flight Attendants by Kathy Kompare and Stephanie Johnson from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review and opinion. This book seemed like one of those books that you sit around the office and say "If I could write a book about all the craziness that's gone on here, I would be a millionaire!" This book is full of all of those stories - some good, some funny, some sad but will keep you entertained. Not a book you can read from start to finish in one day as you will need to take a break.

"True Tales of TWA Flight Attendants" is a collection of anecdotes mostly written by former TWA Flight Attendants. I found the accounts to be entertaining, educational, and at times rather emotional. I laughed quite hard when I read about the Black Bean Soup Incident. To me, the biggest value of this book was getting a peak "behind the curtains" to gain a better understanding of what it is like to deal with the vast range of that flight staff encounter. I would certainly recommend this for frequent fliers and those curious about what it is like to work on the flight deck of a commercial airline.

I thank the many authors of this book for their service, professionalism, humor, and sharing these delightful accounts. I also thank them and the publisher for kindly providing a temporary electronic review copy of this work.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with this uncorrected proof for review.

Kathy Kompare and Stephanie Johnson have assembled a variety of short stories about the early years of TWA, concentrating on their impact on the flight attendants. Reading these stories is like having a conversation with a bubbly flight attendant, with a dash of seriousness thrown in to keep the central the light-hearted approach realistic. Although the stories concentrate on the pleasure of being a TWA flight attendant, there are serious moments as well, adding to the value of the record.

The stories are the memories of the writers and co-workers, are based on fact, but as acknowledged in the introduction, may have altered over time. Some names are authentic; others have been omitted. The writers thank former TWA flight attendants, their families, and other employees for their contribution to the stories. With a lively statement that truth is better than fiction, the writers launch into their, and others’ recall of events on TWA flights, exotic locations, and, at a different pace, the sorrow of a crash in 1996 – as they say, hundreds of stories.

Although this is not a book that I was prepared to finish – the unremitting upbeat nature of the writing, and some of the stories were not to my taste – True Tales of TWA Flight Attendants would be a good book to dip into at the beach, or on a relaxing holiday. On a more serious note, this is a part of a history that is worth recording, and Kathy Kompare and Stephanie Johnson have certainly provided the flavour of the period and the particular work environment of the TWA years.

I received a complimentary copy of this book prior to publication. I felt the stories these women have to share could have been presented much better - there were clearly some exciting moments, but the way in which they are related in the book made them fall a bit flat.

Some of the stories needed much more clarity - i.e., the way they described the guy who looked a lot like Joe Montana made it seem that it actually *was* Joe Montana and that they were joking with him and pretending he was just a lookalike. (This is problematic bc of the infidelity storyline.)

Some of the anecdotes were extremely crude, although probably completely true. It seemed designed to appeal to anyone who’s ever worked in the service industry (and can appreciate the constant battle it is to work with the public.) It seemed like story after story of “politely” sticking it to difficult people.

There were careless misspellings of celebrities’ names, which was irksome and showed a lack of seriousness about publishing.

Bottom line: I feel as though this book could be condensed to one or two magazine articles in Vanity Fair and that there wasn’t enough material to justify an entire book.

This is a tell-all of the early elegant years of air travel told by a veteran flight attendant. Names are dropped and bad behavior all around is highlighted. Some are funny, some are shocking but it is clear that the Pandemic was not the start of passenger behavior issues. I think the book might have been improved by better tighter editing but this is a fun, gossipy read.

What a great book! I love everything by this author and this book was no different! I couldn't put this down and was up all night waiting to see how it ended!

A lovely collection of anecdotes from TWA Flight Attendants over the years.
And what a collection! Some made you laugh, some were impressive and some tore at your heart - especially two about family members being shipped off to live with others and the recollections of Flight 800.
Stories that will stay with me a while.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this book.

This started out entertaining. I felt like I was learning some top secret info from the friendly skies. The stories started getting boring and not at all a secret. Glad I read the beginning, wish I skipped the end.

I requested this book because it sounded interesting and on the whole it was. It is not a book to try and read in one go, more a book to pick up and read a few chapters at a time. The stories were on the whole interesting and entertaining and defiantly showed how attitudes have changed over the years. Having read ‘Above and Beyond’ which was about working on private aircraft I was interested to hear the experiences of the people working on commercial airlines. However, the problem for me was that the book seemed to lack any proper structure or coherent timeline. The stories seemed to jump all over the place and were too randomly put together for my liking. One thing it did do however was make me wish that I could have experienced flying in the 50’s and 60’s when air travel was an ‘event’ and much more luxurious than it is nowadays.

Oh what a different world it was in the 60's and 70's. I totally enjoyed these little snippets of memories that made up this book. I was very familiar with TWA - Kansas City was my hometown - and the airline always had a stellar reputation. I actually applied to be a 'hostess' when I graduated from college but was turned down for being 'too tall'. Nothing much I could do about that!!

Most of the stories are funny with some more serious ones thrown in occasionally. There is a lot of repetition which is understandable since different employees had similar experiences.

I was sorry the author ended the book on a tragic and sad note. I wish the last stories would have been some of the funny ones.