Author Laurie Gwen Shapiro on the real mystery of Amelia Earhart illuminated in her book The Aviator and the Showman: Amelia Earhart, George Putnam, and the Marriage that Made an American Icon.

Send us Fan MailFew figures loom larger in aviation history than Amelia Earhart. Yet after hundreds of books, countless documentaries, and nearly a century of speculation, how much do we actually know about the woman behind the legend?In this episode, Laurie Gwen Shapiro talks about her bestselling book, The Aviator and the Showman. Drawing on newly digitized interviews, archival discoveries, and years of research, Laurie argues that the real mystery of Amelia Earhart isn't what happened to her at the end of her final flight—it's understanding who she was as a person.We explore Earhart's journey from social worker and hobby pilot to international celebrity, the complicated role publisher and promoter George Palmer Putnam played in her fame, and the tension between aviation skill, public image, and advocacy. We also discuss the extraordinary ways Earhart used her platform to champion both aviation and women's rights.Along the way, we venture into the world of some of Earhart's remarkable contemporaries, including Eleanor Smith, Louise Thaden, Lady Mary Heath, Bessie Coleman, and Jackie Cochran. We also talk about the challenges—and rewards—of writing history that is deeply researched, rigorously sourced, and unafraid to embrace the complexity of its subjects.Whether you're a lifelong Amelia Earhart enthusiast or someone who has wondered why she continues to captivate the public imagination nearly a century later, I think you'll find this conversation both thought-provoking and illuminating. And if you're a writer hoping to dig into a different historical mystery, you'll learn from Laurie's expertise as an author, journalist, and professor of journalism. Buy the book: https://literaryaviatrix.com/book/the-aviator-and-the-showman/Some links we discuss in the episode: NASM Amelia Earhart Project Recordings: https://sirismm.si.edu/EADpdfs/NASM.2020.0025.pdfArchive Grid: https://researchworks.oclc.org/archivegrid/Book Finder: https://www.bookfinder.comDid you know you can support your local independent bookshop and me by shopping through my Bookshop.org affiliate links on my website? If a book is available on Bookshop.org, you'll find a link to it on the book page. By shopping through the Literary Aviatrix website a small portion of the sale goes to support the content you love, at no additional cost to you. https://literaryaviatrix.com/shop-all-books/Thanks so much for listening! Stay up to date on book releases, author events, and Aviatrix Book Club discussion dates with the Literary Aviatrix Newsletter. Visit the Literary Aviatrix website to find over 600 books featuring women in aviation in all genres for all ages. Become a Literary Aviatrix Patron and help amplify the voices of women in aviation. Follow me on social media, join the book club, and find all of the things on the Literary Aviatrix linkt.ree. Blue skies, happy reading, and happy listening!-Liz Booker