Beyond the Blue Horizon

Young Otto Kerchner dreams of escaping his father's Wisconsin dairy farm and becoming a flier like his hero Charles Lindbergh. When a small airport is built on an adjoining property, Otto trades odd jobs for flight lessons and becomes a pilot at 16. When World War II breaks out, he enlists in the Army Air Corps and finds himself a year later high over Germany at the controls of a B-17. Otto and his crew fly 23 missions untouched, but then his world shatters, and he must draw on reserves of faith and courage he never imagined.On Wings of the Morning brings to life the ordinary men and women of the Greatest Generation who, stirred by fate and fortune, accomplished extraordinary things. Faithful in its depiction of events and evocative across a spectrum of emotions, this gentle but incisive tale will engage, inform and move readers of all ages.

On the Wings of Eagles continues the saga of Wisconsin farm boy Otto Kerchner as he, his sister Mata, and the community of Pioneer Lake make their way in the brave new world of post-World War II America. This sequel to On Wings of the Morning (which details Otto's service as a B-17 pilot, a fiery crash landing, and his long recovery from physical and psychological wounds), recreates a simpler world in which family and community played a vital role.Picking up in May of 1946, readers will witness a new chapter in Otto's adventure as he starts up an airline, experiences a wedding, witnesses another fiery crash, commands a bomber squadron in the Korean War, runs an air circus, and tries to come to terms with someone from his past-all in the space of a few short years.On the Wings of Eagles features the warmth and rich characterization readers of all ages enjoyed in the first book, and is sure to become a new favorite among the many fans of Otto, his friends, family, and their little town of Pioneer Lake. This second installment in the Beyond the Blue Horizon series will inspire and engage readers from Young Adult on up.

On the Wings of Angels (Book 3 of the Beyond the Blue Horizon Series), continues the saga of Otto Kerchner, the airplane-obsessed Wisconsin farm boy who becomes a hero of World War II in On Wings of the Morning (Book 1). He continued to lead his family, friends, and community into new ventures-and sometimes danger-in On the Wings of Eagles (Book 2).The latest in the series picks up in 1954 with an unlikely mix of elements: a minor league baseball team, mobsters from Minneapolis, a Soviet jet, family discord, sudden death, an aviation camp, a kidnapping, and a marauding bear. Meanwhile, the Kerchners, their friends, and their community cope with a changing world.Readers of the earlier novels have praised the easy style and realistic touches in the books which help recreate the ambiance and feel of those remembered years, including the simple pleasures of picnics, birthday parties, and pick-up baseball games. The characters are at once unique and identifiable, and their hopes, fears, and struggles still resonate today. This book is a must read among must reads for just about everyone.