Status
Available
Call number
Library's review
Nordsøen, juleaften 1957
En pilot i en Vampire jetjager er på vej hjem for at holde jul, men alle elektriske instrumenter sætter ud og han har kun brændstof til 80 minutters flyvetid i alt. Hans eneste håb er at flyve et par trekant-mønstre og håbe at en kvik radaroperatør opdager det og
På blind tillid følger Vampirepiloten med ned i hastighed og højde og bliver belønnet med en stribe landingslys under de lavthængende tågebanker. Han sætter maskinen ned på de sidste dråber brændstof og regner med at brandbiler og andre tegn på at nødlandingen er observeret dukker op. I stedet kommer en småberuset depotofficer Kaptajn Marks til stede i en jeep. Det viser sig at landingen er sket på en nedlagt base og at det kun var fordi Marks hørte flystøj at han tændte lysene. Der er heller ikke sendt et lodsfly op og i det hele taget er det lidt en gåde hvor Mosquitoen kom fra. Vampirepiloten er heller ikke landet på Merriam St. George basen, men på flyvestation Minton som han aldrig før har hørt om. Han ringer også til Merriam St. George og de kan fortælle at ingen har været klar over at han var i vanskeligheder.
Vampirepiloten har set bogstaverne JK på den og det passer med en Løjtnant Johnny Kavanagh, der under krigen var en af de dygtigste stifindere. En gammel messetjener fortæller om ham og om at han havde for vane at tage en ekstra tur for at se om der var halvt ødelagte bombefly, der skulle hjælpes med at finde vej hjem til basen efter et togt over Tyskland. Vampirepiloten gætter på at Kavanagh på en eller anden måde har fået mulighed for stadig at flyve Mosquito-bombeflyet, men messetjeneren fortæller at Johnny Kavanagh styrtede ned med sit fly juleaften 1943 et sted ude i Nordsøen. God nat og glædelig jul.
Godt fortalt spøgelseshistorie. Men jeg tror ikke på spøgelser og særligt ikke dem med samme initialer som Jesus Kristus.
En pilot i en Vampire jetjager er på vej hjem for at holde jul, men alle elektriske instrumenter sætter ud og han har kun brændstof til 80 minutters flyvetid i alt. Hans eneste håb er at flyve et par trekant-mønstre og håbe at en kvik radaroperatør opdager det og
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sender et lodsfly ud for at hjælpe ham til nærmeste base. Der dukker faktisk en op i sidste øjeblik og overraskende nok er det en propeldreven gammel flyvemaskine fra anden verdenskrig, en Mosquito.På blind tillid følger Vampirepiloten med ned i hastighed og højde og bliver belønnet med en stribe landingslys under de lavthængende tågebanker. Han sætter maskinen ned på de sidste dråber brændstof og regner med at brandbiler og andre tegn på at nødlandingen er observeret dukker op. I stedet kommer en småberuset depotofficer Kaptajn Marks til stede i en jeep. Det viser sig at landingen er sket på en nedlagt base og at det kun var fordi Marks hørte flystøj at han tændte lysene. Der er heller ikke sendt et lodsfly op og i det hele taget er det lidt en gåde hvor Mosquitoen kom fra. Vampirepiloten er heller ikke landet på Merriam St. George basen, men på flyvestation Minton som han aldrig før har hørt om. Han ringer også til Merriam St. George og de kan fortælle at ingen har været klar over at han var i vanskeligheder.
Vampirepiloten har set bogstaverne JK på den og det passer med en Løjtnant Johnny Kavanagh, der under krigen var en af de dygtigste stifindere. En gammel messetjener fortæller om ham og om at han havde for vane at tage en ekstra tur for at se om der var halvt ødelagte bombefly, der skulle hjælpes med at finde vej hjem til basen efter et togt over Tyskland. Vampirepiloten gætter på at Kavanagh på en eller anden måde har fået mulighed for stadig at flyve Mosquito-bombeflyet, men messetjeneren fortæller at Johnny Kavanagh styrtede ned med sit fly juleaften 1943 et sted ude i Nordsøen. God nat og glædelig jul.
Godt fortalt spøgelseshistorie. Men jeg tror ikke på spøgelser og særligt ikke dem med samme initialer som Jesus Kristus.
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Publication
Kbh. : Lademann, 1976.
Description
In this bestselling Christmas story, a pilot needs a miracle to make it home It is Christmas Eve, 1957, and there are cozier places to be than the cockpit of a de Havilland Vampire fighter plane. But for the Royal Air Force pilot who has just taken off from West Germany, this single-seat jet is the only way to make it back to England for Christmas morning. His flight plan is simple; the fuel tank is full. In sixty-six minutes, he will be back in Blighty. But then the plane begins to fail. First the compass goes haywire, then the radio dies. Lost and alone above the English coast, the pilot is searching for a landing strip when the fog closes in, signaling certain death. He has given up hope when a second shadow appearsa Mosquito fighter-bomber of World War II vintage. The plane is a shepherd," guiding the Vampire to a safe landing, and its appearance is a gift from fate, a miracle out of timebut for one lonely pilot, the mystery has just begun. A classic bestseller, beloved by aviation fans and general readers alike, The Shepherd is a gripping, heartwarming tale for a cold winter's night.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member othersam
Flying back home one night for Christmas in his single-seater fighter-plane, a pilot suddenly finds himself struggling for his life: lost in impenetrable fog, without working instruments or radio, how can he find his way to safety? Another plane, of a strangely old-fashioned design, appears out of
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the mist on his wing to guide him. But is his rescuer really all he seems? This novella's approachable length and lavish, atmospheric illustrations make it more than suitable for almost any age-group. A haunting story with a proper twist in the tail. Brilliant. Show Less
LibraryThing member devenish
A short (55 page) Novella, illustrated really well by Chris Foss. It is a very good Christmas ghost story which I read every year with great enjoyment. Highly recomended.
LibraryThing member mysterymax
I get goose-bumps and a few tears every time I read this wonderful little story of a pilot, flying a Vampire aircraft across the North Sea to get home for Christmas in 1957, and the 'Shepherd' who appears, flying a WWII Mosquito, to guide him home through the fog when the electronics in his Vampire
It is also amazing to me how the truly excellent writers, of whom Forsyth is one, can tell such a story in so few words. He so exactly depicts the thoughts of the pilot when he realizes all is 'not right'.
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die and he has no compass or radio. It is also amazing to me how the truly excellent writers, of whom Forsyth is one, can tell such a story in so few words. He so exactly depicts the thoughts of the pilot when he realizes all is 'not right'.
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LibraryThing member TheTwoDs
A short, simple fable in the tradition of the Christmas ghost stories of Dickens, though transposed to the late 1950s, The Shepherd is a departure for Forsyth, normally a writer of international thrillers. Elements of Christianity imbue the story - is there a ghost? A higher power? Easy to read, it
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goes down lightly with a nice twist, just as the best tales of Dickens. Show Less
LibraryThing member Smiley
An English Christmas ghost story.
LibraryThing member Veeralpadhiar
A novella by Forsyth which is a quick read and much unlike his other works.
There are sketches included as well. Read this if you get your hands on it. It won't take much of your time and the story is simple enough.
There are sketches included as well. Read this if you get your hands on it. It won't take much of your time and the story is simple enough.
LibraryThing member AlexBrightsmith
I stumbled across a Frederick Forsyth interview on TV one day (it was about gravel pits encroaching on his Bedfordshire village) and thought, if the man speaks like this he has to be worth reading. Then I discovered the average length of a Forsyth novel, and wavered a bit.
Then I discovered The
If you don't want to start on a Forsyth doorstop without a little reassurance that his voice is one you can live with for the duration, this is an excellent starting point
Then I discovered The
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Shepherd. It's a gem of a tale, beautifully told, nicely revealed, and short enough that there's not much more I can say about it without giving something away.If you don't want to start on a Forsyth doorstop without a little reassurance that his voice is one you can live with for the duration, this is an excellent starting point
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LibraryThing member GraemeShimmin
I enjoyed reading this short story but it was a little bit underwhelming in the end.
It's probably a half an hour read at the most, padded out a bit, in the version I read, with stylised black and white illustrations which, to be fair, were nicely done and added to the atmosphere of the story.
The
The supernatural 'twist' as presented is the obvious ending almost as soon as the situation is set up and so it was a bit disappointing - I thought there would be some kind of clever subversion or expansion of the idea in the last few pages.
To be honest, I wouldn't recommend paying full price (it's £6 on Amazon, which is definitely not value for money) for The Shepherd, but if you happen to find it in a friend's bookshelf, a library or a charity shop it's worth reading.
It's probably a half an hour read at the most, padded out a bit, in the version I read, with stylised black and white illustrations which, to be fair, were nicely done and added to the atmosphere of the story.
The
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problem is, the story itself is a bit slight. It was obvious to me what was happening (though the author does his best to offer rational explanations as he goes until the supernatural 'twist' is revealed) and I must admit I was expecting there to be a bit more to the story. The supernatural 'twist' as presented is the obvious ending almost as soon as the situation is set up and so it was a bit disappointing - I thought there would be some kind of clever subversion or expansion of the idea in the last few pages.
To be honest, I wouldn't recommend paying full price (it's £6 on Amazon, which is definitely not value for money) for The Shepherd, but if you happen to find it in a friend's bookshelf, a library or a charity shop it's worth reading.
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LibraryThing member Schmerguls
I much appreciated The Day of the Jackal which I read 6 Feb 2010 so I decided to read this slight fiction by Forsyth. It tells of an RAF pilot flying home in 1957 from Germany for Christmas. He loses his radio and other aspects of his plane. It is fearsome, but since the story is told in the first
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person we know he will survive--and he is guided to safety by a World War II plane piloted by a long dead flyer. So, I never having much use for fantasy, the story is not so noteworthy. Maybe if his being saved had been supernaturally aided the story might have been more acceptable to me. But it is a pleasant and at times exciting story. Show Less
LibraryThing member MinaIsham
-- This slim novel (123 pgs.) is a quick read. Lou Feck's illustrations inhabit whole pages. Forsyth is a pilot as well as a writer. Charlie Delta is a Royal Air Force pilot flying alone at night when he realizes his Vampire compass & radio aren't working. How Delta lands the plane makes Forsyth's
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novel fascinating. -- Show Less
LibraryThing member auntieknickers
Not what one might expect from Frederick Forsyth, this is a slightly spooky Christmas story about a young pilot who gets lost flying home on Christmas Eve. I think pilots would like it, and although I'm not one, I enloyed it. This is the story read by Alan Maitland on CBC Radio every Christmas.
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(Available on YouTube.) Show Less
LibraryThing member PaperDollLady
The best Christmas story I've read!
Subjects
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1975
Physical description
63 p.; 20.2 cm
ISBN
8715006425 / 9788715006425
Local notes
Omslag: Freddy Pedersen
Omslaget viser forfatter, titel og forlag med lys skrift på mørkeblå baggrund
Indskannet omslag - N650U - 150 dpi
Oversat fra engelsk "The Shepherd" af Mogens Boisen
Illustrationer: Chris Foss
Omslaget viser forfatter, titel og forlag med lys skrift på mørkeblå baggrund
Indskannet omslag - N650U - 150 dpi
Oversat fra engelsk "The Shepherd" af Mogens Boisen
Illustrationer: Chris Foss
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Pages
63
DDC/MDS
| 823.914 |