TransAtlantic by Colum McCann

This book is about two young men who, after the war, attempt to fly from Canada to Ireland in an adapted war plane.  Before they set off, they are given a letter by a female reporter who is determined to pursue her dream as a writer.  The letter is never opened but is passed down through the generations of the reporter's descendants and the book follows the lives of those in possession of it.  I found this book difficult to engage with and hard to enjoy.  The writing is very good but the plot is slow and I felt the female characters were too undefined to be entertaining.  It is an interesting premis and there is a lot of well researched information in this book but I found it a bit bland and lacking in emotion.