Circling the Sun is Paula McLain’s newest novel-centering on the life of Beryl Markham from her childhood in Africa to her famous solo transatlantic flight. Growing up in Kenya during the golden age of British Colonialism she spent her childhood training horses with her father and as a young adult mingles with Karen Blixen (Isak Dinesen), Bror Blixen, Denys Finch Hatton and the Happy Valley set.

Although well-known and somewhat infamous in her time Beryl Markham became more of an aviation footnote until the 1980’s when a letter was found from Hemingway detailing how great her memoir West with the Night was-leading to a reissue of the memoir and more interest in her remarkable life.

Having read West with the Night and McLain’s The Paris Wife I was eagerly anticipating this fictionalized account of Markham’s life. McLain does an excellent job of capturing the spirit of her childhood, her romances and her unconventionality. Markham a great beauty was the first registered female horse trainer in Kenya-she worked hard, took chances, made mistakes and did not shrink from the consequences.

I thoroughly enjoyed the richness of Circling the Sun and wanted to spend more time with Markham and her exploits.