Flight Risk
A Novel
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
Jennifer Fenn's debut novel inspired by true events, about a teenage boy who has stolen—and crashed—not one, but three airplanes. And each time he’s walked away unscathed.
Who is Robert Jackson Kelly? Is he a juvenile delinquent? A criminal mastermind? A folk hero? One thing is clear: Robert always defies what people think of him. And now, the kid who failed at school, relationships, and almost everything in life, is determined to successfully steal and land a plane.
Told as an investigation into Robert’s psyche, the narrative includes multiple points of view as well as documentary elements like emails, official records, and interviews with people who knew Robert. Ultimately, Flight Risk is a thrilling story about one teenager who is determined to find a moment of transcendence after everyone else has written him off as lost.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Debut author Fenn tells a multilayered story of identity, ambition, and societal expectations as she chronicles the misadventures of Robert Jackson Kelley, who becomes known as the Lollipop Kid after he steals and crashes three private airplanes. Through newspaper articles, interviews, discipline records, and flashbacks, Fenn fleshes out Robert's history as a juvenile delinquent from a broken home, detailing his obsession with flight simulators and yearning to escape the small Washington State island he calls home. Sent to a youth home after a drug bust, Robert eventually escapes and steals the first of several planes, an act that turns him into a local legend, makes him the subject of a widespread manhunt, and inadvertently gives rise to a minor pop culture movement. Inspired by the true story of the so-called Barefoot Bandit, this story moves slowly but steadily through the years, building a larger-than-life aura around Robert. However, for all the focus on him, he remains something of an enigma in his own narrative. Ages 12 up.
