David Trenbirth

Taking the High Ground: a Novel David Trenbirth

When old square-rigger Ernest Breton makes an unusual gift to his great-nephew, Gary Breton, amid the trauma of World War II in England, it impacts several lives in the following decades of the twentieth century.

Meticulously researched, Taking the High Ground tells of air and ground combat, adventures at sea, reckless flights, and steamy love affairs. German bomber pilots, British commandos, a brash American fighter pilot with the RAF, and prisoners of war in Britain are linked with children and adults on the home front. These accounts narrate the story of flawed heroes in extraordinary times.

Ocean sailing, flying light aircraft, murder, and romance all play a role in this fast-moving saga that travels from South Africa through Europe to New York and Canada. Taking the High Ground presents a firsthand account of how the survivors handled the effects of battles, firestorms, invasions, and madcap schemes. It provides a fascinating look at the world from 1897 to the new century.