posted on 24 Feb 2021

The Girl with her Head in the Clouds by Karen McCombie, illustrated by Anneli Bray

There is a fine line between being brave and being reckless, although I must admit that I have never been either of these, either as a child or an adult. Not so for young Dolly Shepherd, the pioneering Edwardian parachutist who seems to be drawn to the frissant of potential danger from a young age. This entertaining ‘boldly imagined account’ explains how she defied convention and enjoyed a growing reputation as a star of the skies.

Dolly and her brother seem to enjoy quite a lot of freedom and they are encouraged to take risks and learn to be independent. She loves to visit the nearby Alexandra Palace and acts the part of a dead girl in a show there. She even manages to be the emergency stand-in for a very dangerous shooting  trick involving a blindfolded Colonel Cody. Sixteen year old Dolly’s parents seem remarkably unconcerned when the esteemed hot air balloon pilot, Captain Gaudron first invites her to plummet from one of his balloons using a parachute. Her Aunt Mariam has employed her in the business of producing ostrich feathers for the hats of grand ladies and is much more sceptical about her niece’s growing fascination for daring aeronautic stunts. I can see plenty of scope for classroom discussion here about different perspectives.

The short novel is packed with impressive episodes that will inspire readers to follow their dreams. How thrilling to be able to sail through the sky on a breeze and look at the world below. As Dolly gains in confidence, she travels every weekend by steam train to many towns and cities as part of Captain Gaudron’s aerial display team.  There is plenty of jeopardy too – especially when she has to think quickly to save her friend who has joined her for a parachute jump experience that goes badly wrong.

The author also manages to include some relevant social history about the slowly changing attitudes to women. The suffragettes ‘thought women should be more interested in politics than fashion’ and so break a window at Aunt Mariam’s workshop and  Dolly wears knickerbockers instead of a skirt which is seen as rather outlandish.   She benefits from ground-breaking medical treatment when recovering from a serious back injury. She remains hopeful about girls of the future sitting in flying machines, and maybe even becoming pilots! The start of the First World War leads her to stop flying but to become a fearless driver on the front line in France.

Dolly’s early adventures clearly shape her approach to life and she goes on to become ‘an unstoppable force’ playing an important part in her community. She lived a full life until the age of 94 and her daughter continued the daredevil tradition as a parachutist.

As ever, this fascinating and informative story published by Barrington Stoke, is brought to life with several vividly drawn black and white illustrations throughout. I was thoroughly engaged and can imagine that young emergent, reluctant and dyslexic readers will be equally entranced.  

Karen Argent

February 2021