Air Lines

Drawing on his fascination with the natural world and human nature, John Power presents us with a collection of short stories that peer around the corner of life. Each self-contained story captures a snapshot, a scene, a momentary observation to highlight both the beauty and brutality of our natures. Set in different countries and epochs, these poetic, fable-like tales are linked by a single, arbitrary thread: a reference to air travel.

• An inventor tries to gain funding for a new kind of butterfly-powered airship.

• An introverted child is obsessed with leaving the ground.

• An ancient landscape speaks to a hiker with sounds of growth and decay.

With sting-in-the-tail resolutions and piercing honesty, Air Lines: Short Stories to Be Read on Planes investigates the truth behind our interactions with ourselves and others.

John Power is an Australian journalist, editor, and author. He holds a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) degree from The University of Melbourne and a Graduate Diploma in Publishing & Editing from Monash University.

His first book of fiction, Life Training: Short Stories to Be Read on Trains, was published by Longueville Books.