Publisher: Solstice Publishing
Date of publication: December 13th, 2020
Genre: Adventure, Semi-autobiography
Purchase Links: Amazon | Alibris | IndieBound
Format read: eBook
Received from: Author for honest review
Trigger Warnings: None
Amazon Synopsis:
Helicopter Adventure
Prison Survival
Family Struggle
A Private Heaven is an adventure-filled drama based on a true story. Like Norman Maclean’s A River Runs Through It, this is the story of two brothers as opposite as Cain and Abel.
When Dave, the impulsive, younger brother completes his tour of duty in Vietnam, he moves his young family to Newfoundland, where he embarks on a challenging, often dangerous career as a helicopter pilot. Dave’s older brother, a six-foot-four, muscle-bound convict, has Hollywood good looks, a charming smile, and a serious penchant for violence.
With the stunningly beautiful island of Newfoundland as one backdrop and the Oklahoma State Penitentiary as the other, A Private Heaven is brimming with helicopters, rescues, icebergs, poachers, a prison rodeo, and even a prime minister’s wife.
Dave quickly learns the harsh realities of bush flying and wonders what will explode first-his fragile marriage or his beat-up, antique helicopter.
First Line:
The stars faded as I stood on the breezy deck of the small oceangoing ship that ferried passengers, cars, and freight between Nova Scotia and the Island of Newfoundland.
A Private Heaven by Dave Eagleston
I usually do not read anything autobiographical or semi-autobiographical. They do not hold my interest. But, for some reason, A Private Heaven caught my eye when I read the author’s email. I did go back and forth on if I wanted to read it before I said yes. I am glad I did because A Private Heaven was a thoughtful, sad, and well-written book that kept my attention.
A Private Heaven is told in dual storylines with two different points of view. The first storyline (the one that starts the book off) is Dave’s, and it is in 1st person. The second storyline is Marve’s, and it is told in 3rd person. I had no issues with keeping track of the book when it went between storylines. The alternating POV’s made it easy.
The pacing of A Private Heaven was medium. It took me a couple of days to read the book. The book did have some lag in the middle of the book, but it quickly got back on track and stayed on track to the end.
I did learn more than I ever wanted to know about helicopters and flying them in A Private Heaven. I’m not complaining. I knew that this book was about a helicopter bush pilot from the blurb. But, I am saying that if helicopters came up as a Jeopardy subject, I would know how to answer them!
I thought that Dave’s life was exciting. He followed his dream by moving to Canada and, through hard work and sacrifice, he made that dream a reality. What I liked the most is that his bad times were not glossed over. All the struggles that he and his wife had been clearly outlined. But, also clearly outlined, was the steps that he took to fix them.
I thought that Marve’s life was tragic. It was hard even to imagine Dave and Marve as brothers. There was a point in the book where I thought Marve was going to go straight, but boy, I was proven wrong. I cried during his last chapter.
I enjoyed the end of A Private Heaven, if though I thought it ended abruptly. The follow up (not quite an epilogue). It detailed precisely where several vital characters were today. I loved seeing how these people prospered!!
A Private Heaven was an exciting and compelling read. It was medium paced with a fantastic storyline.
I would recommend A Private Heaven to anyone over the age of 16. There are some scenes of drug use and child abuse. There is one scene where the hero is criticized by someone who was anti-Vietnam War. There are some mild language and mild violence. There are scenes where Marve is incarcerated.