It is 1916 and the Great War is about to venture into the skies of Western Europe in numbers never previously imagined. For the next two and a half years the intensity of aerial combat grows exponentially as new machines are continually brought into service and new tactics evolve. For the men who fly these missions a multitude of skills need to be learned in short order before they can expect to stand a chance of ever going home. The combat sequences are derived from an algorithm created by the author to give original but realistic content, from dog-fighting to strafing attacks to suicidal balloon-burning missions. This is set against a backdrop of squadron life, including everything from routine maintenance and rosters to the most mundane pastimes of the semi-literate. Fledglings follows the lives of airmen on both sides of the lines: Sebastian von Bülow, born to a life of privilege; Ross Burke, an Australian serving in the RFC; George Miller, a former navy flier commanding a squadron of Camels in the final year of the conflict. Their experiences are similar but different, and Fledglings is a story that dissects their mental state: how do people deal with their fellows; how do they cope with the stress of combat; what causes personalities to change? Men of all walks of life learn to live together and die alone.
About the Author: Norman Mjadwesch has always had an interest in creative writing, history and statistical analysis, but following advice from his school's careers advisor he was steered towards studying psychology at Charles Sturt University. Having thus completed a degree not well suited to his character he then turned his back on academia and spent the next few decades working on farms, driving trucks and learning martial arts so that life as a doorman would be less hazardous to his health. When his body was sufficiently pulverised after many years of physical abuse he turned back to a quieter lifestyle and now spends his days trying to make a living with words. He has written several books on varied topics, but a favourite theme is that simulations of real life events can be constructed using mathematical algorithms. His first few works are based on models that can be played as dice games. He is now branching out into novels - historical fiction is harder to write than it appears, but doesn't hurt half as much as a back kick to the nuts.