The Night Witches

An extraordinary story about the first all-female flying squadron told through the eyes of its only Jewish member, The Night Witches is an empowering portrait of friendship and sacrifice, from the Crooks Corner Book Prize-longlisted author of In the Shadow of the Greenbrier.

1976, Baltimore: Twenty-year-old Miriam Shelasky is still living at home, helping her father with the books for his failing business. All her Polish immigrant parents want is for her to finish night school and marry a nice Jewish boy. But Miriam has other dreams. Women have only just begun working as airline pilots. And Miriam has always dreamt of flying. But her parents, scarred by the war, have made it clear that this is not her fate. 

1941, Soviet Russia: Polina Gelman and Galina Dokutovich have been best friends since childhood, and fascinated with airplanes for as long as they can remember. So when war breaks out, and they hear the Soviet army is forming an all-female flying regiment, they won’t take no for an answer. Polina and Galina train as night bombers, soaring in the dark over enemy territory. But as they approach their biggest mission, a surprising betrayal threatens to come between the two women, jeopardizing their careers and their lives.

Alternating between 70s Baltimore and WWII Russia, The Night Witches tells the true story of the only all-female flying squadron. A powerful tale of friendship, sacrifice, and the silence of true courage, The Night Witches cements Emily Matchar as an extraordinary storyteller in historical fiction.