The Big Hop

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What to expect

Brought to you by Penguin.

A non-stop flight across the Atlantic might seem routine today. But it is only possible because of those who went first.

Newfoundland, 1919. Buffeted by winds, an unwieldy aircraft struggled to take to the air. Cramped side by side in its open cockpit were two men, freezing cold, but resolute. They had a dream: to be the first in human history to fly, non-stop, across the Atlantic Ocean. But there were three other teams competing against them . . .

The young aviators who would get off the ground had already defied death many times during World War One. David Rooney’s evocative and deeply researched account shows how it was their thrilling wartime experiences that ultimately led them to the ‘Big Hop’, and brought old friends together for one more daring adventure.

These Atlantic pioneers weren’t scientists or upper-class officers. They were ordinary men, risking their lives in the name of progress, who ultimately ushered in the age of global connection in which we live now.

'Capturing not only the perils faced by the intrepid airmen who attempted the flight, but also their humanity' JOHN LANCASTER, author of The Great Air Race
'Fabulous ... Works on every level, balancing technological know-how with superb characterisation’ JACKY HYAMS, author of Hurricane: The Plane that Won the War

© David Rooney 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025

Critics Review

'One of the most astonishing moments in aviation history finally gets its due in The Big Hop, a vivid and utterly compelling account of the 1919 contest to cross the Atlantic by plane. David Rooney is an expert storyteller with a big heart, capturing not only the perils faced by the intrepid airmen who attempted the flight, but also their humanity'
John Lancaster, author of The Great Air Race
'The Big Hop is a fabulous book. It works on every level, balancing technological know-how with superb characterisation. A gripping read.'
Jacky Hyams, author of Hurricane
'Enchanting ... Blends biography and scientific history in nimble measure. ... [A] very fine book'
Unseen Histories

Praise for David Rooney:

'About Time is abundantly clever, with myriad fascinations on every page'

Simon Winchester, New York Times
'Fascinating ... it's to Rooney's credit that although he clearly knows a colossal amount about clocks, he wears his learning very lightly'
Dominic Sandbrook, Sunday Times
'An utterly dazzling book'
Jerry Brotton, author of A History of the World in Twelve Maps
'A fascinating volume on what clocks say both to us and about us ... full of riches ... a valuable intellectual journey at a moment ripe for contemplation'
Michael O'Donnell, Wall Street Journal
'Startlingly original'
Literary Review

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