The Aeronauts: Travels in the Air

Two people, their lives worlds apart. In terms of age, background and geography, they couldn't be more different. One is a young boy, Nate Onchou, and he's brutally abused. With overwhelming emotional pain flooding through his mind, he contemplates suicide. His life hangs in the balance. The other is an old man, retired Admiral Richard O'Kane, who has seen more than his share of brutality. Through an unlikely turn of events, their lives cross paths. Can the old man help the boy? Can he show him that life is worth living?

The Last Patrol is really two stories, or rather it's a story within a story, the inner story being a war story, inspired by the true events surrounding the last patrol of the legendary WWII submarine, USS Tang and its Captain, Commander Richard O'Kane. But more than a story, The Last Patrol is a study of character, courage and faith. It's a study of human nature and our dual capacity for evil and good, cruelty and kindness, self-serving and sacrifice, venality and friendship, cowardice and courage, loyalty and disloyalty, nobility and ignobility. It's a study of the power of words, truth and lies and what it takes to be a leader. It takes the view that to look the enemy in the eye, one need only look in the mirror because we're usually more like our enemy than we'd like to admit, and in the end our greatest enemy is always our self.
To read the first six chapters for free, visit the website: http://thelastpatrolusstang.wix.com/tajiri