Storytime: Henry Fanshaw Takes Flight

Fanshaw, No. 75 Squadron mascot, bear about town, kidnap victim and megastar is back with a new book.

Henry Fanshaw Takes Flight, written by Gillian Torckler and illustrated by Adele Jackson, is a first person (or bear) account of the adventures of the RNZAF’s highly decorated and most frequently kidnapped mascot.

The 'bearography' begins in the 1970s and tells the story of the RNZAF’s striker jet capability as well as Henry’s adventures – including being bear-napped and dangled below a helicopter, ending up in Disneyland and losing an eye in Timor-Leste.

Henry Fanshaw Takes Flight follows Gillan and Adele’s earlier collaboration about the bear – My Name is Henry Fanshaw: The true story of New Zealand’s Bomber Squadron.