"Blackbird" books

great find,,i've been looking for those for years,after i got to see a friends books

 

Nice..I'd have grabbed it for that price too..I remember looking for a copy of Sled Driver a while ago and it was around 250 I think.

 

I have not sprung for "Sled Driver" but I do have a copy of "The Untouchables" autographed by Brian himself.

 

two copies for $600/ea on Amazon..bah.

 

How do you like that book? Is there anything in their worth reading that can't be found elsewhere?

 

I like the book very much but I would not recommend it as anyone's first Blackbird book. The book is filled with essays and anecdotes from pilots, ground and technical support personnel which IMO set this book apart from others as they are unique first hand accounts I have not seen elsewhere. It is truly the perfect partner to Sled Driver as the perspective of each book is different but complimentary. "The Untouchables" has more of a human storyline with Habu as the main feature.

Paul Crickmore's book is still the best I've seen from an overall history and technical perspective.

 

Well it took nearly 20 years, but I finally got a like-new 2003 centennial limited edition Sled Driver book. It's the one with the four signatures inside including the first Blackbird pilot Bob Gilliland among others (he passed away last July RIP). It cost a pretty penny, but I waited for a decent price and a non-personalized message by Shul on the inside cover. All of the ones I found had someones name, but this one did not. There is a golden anniversary set you can buy new right now it appears for $500 or so and it includes The Untouchables, which mine doesn't have. I'll keep this forever and it will go well with my memorabilia I bought from Nasa some years ago.

 

Closest I can come to that is a copy of Blackbird Rising signed by Donn Byrnes, but the photos are non-existent.

 

As an author dealing with Amazon who did publish my book through Amazon and Kindle I will no longer be interested in anything Amazon. I wrote the book, put it together, and they manufactured it. They recently prohibited me as an author from purchasing my book at author's price like most other publishers do and I have to pay the full price. So, I no longer can offer autographed copies . I wasn't selling the books and making big bucks , I was self promoting, I guess. There is no advertising or promotion by Amazon that is obvious so it is up to me to do the marketing while they make the profit, however small. I get the huge royalty of 5.00 bucks for every sale. I never realized how much work and expense was involved in writing and publishing a book. I'm not young enough to try it again, especially with Amazon.

 

I refuse to do any business with Amazon. My friends think I'm crazy for being the only person they know without Prime. I can't stand the way they treat their employees, sellers, and many other issues I won't get into here. I wish nothing but the worst for them.

Hopefully you can find another way to promote and sell your book. Sled Driver was something I've had my eye on well before online sales took over the market so I don't know what the best methods are to suggest unfortunately.

 

I'm working on another smaller book but I will work with one of the many smaller outfits. The problem with them is the hassle of formatting and editing that take time and effort that I am short on right now.

 

Bob, maybe you ought to take a trip to downtown Seattle and give Jeff Bezos a piece of your mind. You're not that far away.

 

About 10 years ago I picked up a signed copy of Sled Driver (in very good condition) in a thrift shop in San Francisco for $8 bucks while I was on holiday. I could hardly control my hand shaking while I handed over the cash!

John