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Chapter Overview
Chapter 1: AudiobookHub Recommendation
Chapter 2: Ballooning is not a sport for the fainthearted.
Chapter 3: Balloons can be used for daring escapes, though at times several attempts are required.
Chapter 4: Soon after their invention, hot-air balloons enjoyed a very brief era of military glory.
Chapter 5: Sophie Blanchard thrilled crowds in the early nineteenth century with her balloon stunts.
Chapter 6: The rise of the railways reduced ballooning to a purely recreational activity.
Chapter 7: The romance of ballooning helped spark the earliest science fiction of the modern era.
Chapter 8: In 1871, Paris was surrounded by Prussian forces, and balloons offered hope to the besieged French.
Chapter 9: In the face of rapid technological advances, ballooning’s coming decline was unmistakable.
Description
Falling Upwards (2014) details the surprisingly rich history of hot-air balloons. It begins with the first successful human attempts to take to the air using balloons and goes on to chronicle their clandestine role in escape attempts and military ventures. From daring balloonists from the golden age of ballooning to the literature they inspired, it’s all covered here.
Who Should Listen
- Anyone with a taste for exploration and invention
- Science enthusiasts
- Historians of science