Bibliotherapy: Books to Read if Scared of Flying

Symptom: Aerophobia (fear of flying)

Cure: Books to make you forget you are 35,000 feet in the air.

It’s that time of year (summer) when many will able taking to the skies to be transported to new adventures and sunnier climes.  For some of us flying is no more difficult than taking a bus.  For others however, the thought of boarding a large metal bird to be suspended at 35,000 feet somewhere between land and sky, or even life and death is terrifying.

If you are of a nervous flying disposition then this bibliotherapy cure is for you.  A flight whether it is 2 hours or 12, is the perfect opportunity to be lost in a book.  If you are scared of flying then being lost in a book so gripping you might even forget where you are is the perfect cure for acrophobia.

Murder mysteries or thrillers are a good place to start, just ensure they don’t involve crashing planes or air disasters. If you have left your book buying to the last minute, all airports will stock a generous supply of these kinds of ‘airplane’ reads. For this kind of read I might be tempted to turn to Patricia Highsmith.  Her slightly  uneasy psychological thrillers will keep you on the edge you seat without adding to any heightened anxiety you might already be feeling.

The Cuckoo’s Calling Robert Galbraith

This is the first in the Strike series by Robert Galbraith (aka JK Rowling) and a jolly good read it is too.  Set in London the war veteran turned detective Cormorant Strike will take you on a number of adventures as he solves murders and reveals skulduggery in London’s seedier side.  This is a high quality page turner.

Fishermans Creek or Jamaica Inn by Daphne Du Maurier

Either of these books will transport you from the metal box in which you find yourself trapped to a rugged Cornish coastline full of pirates and ne’re do wells. These books are full of adventure. The secrets and passions and will set your heart racing so fast, you won’t even notice the annoying passeger in front of you slamming his seat back as far as it will go the moment the seatbelt sign goes off.

Some Luck by Jane Smily

Some Luck Jane Smiley is the first in a trilogy which spans 100 years and provides the perfect escapism. This is not a murder mystery or a thriller but it is an epic tale of a family in Iowa from 1920 to 1953. The 30 years over which this novel is set sees birth and death, joy and sadness, profit and loss and war and peace.  Each chapter spans a whole year in the life of Walter and Rosanna.  The story and characters are developed and woven together through the events which shape them both locally and internationally as war takes hold in Europe. The chapters are short and one is never enough, you will find yourself racing though them, oblivious to the call of the cabin crew offering ‘chicken or beef’.

These books, perhaps accompanied by a generous gin and tonic will get even the most nervous flier through.  You may arrive at your destination rung out and exhausted but this will be from sheer literary absorption and concentration and not airplane induced anxiety.

Happy Holidays!

You can find my other bibliotherapy cures here.