In his richly illustrated documentary tribute to the American animal and other foreign nationals in flight, the author introduces an all star cast, from the Montgolfier brothers first balloon born menagerie (a sheep, a rooster and a duck) to Kiddo the first cat to try crossing the Atlantic by air, by way of Lord Brabazon's flying pig and a host of horses, dogs, lions, goats, military pigeons, airborne cows, parachuting dogs, plus the odd lobster.

Allan Janus works in the Archives Division of the National Air and Space Museum, where he assists researchers and maintains the archives' balloons and airship files. He has organized exhibits for the Museum, including Fauna in the Files, Airships in the Archives, Army Green to Air Force Blue, and When the Going was Good. He also wrote Dog is my Co-Pilot for Air & Space Smithsonian magazine. Janus is also a well-known photographer, whose work is represented in the National Museum of American Art, The Corcoran Gallery of Art, and the Baltimore Museum of Art. Janus grew up in the Washington D.C. area, and currently lives in Washington Grove, Maryland, with two decidedly earth-bound cats, Max and Maxine.