Word: lighter
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...only cumbrous thing about this novel is the title, borrowed from some lines by W. H. Auden. Otherwise, Balloons Are Available is lighter than air and easily dirigible toward its comic purpose. The hero, who progresses from repairman to executive vice president, is named Howard Ormsby. Part Candide, part Buster Keaton, he is loosed in a land where every pratfall is followed by a commercial. Author Crittenden's best effects are gained through a sort of contrapuntal dialogue. One of Howard's loves tells him the story of her life, including the part about her older brother...
Courtial takes on Ferdinand as a "secretary" in a business that becomes the mecca for every meccano-minded nut in France. It is the world of popular mechanics fictionalized. Courtial himself is an idealist and charlatan, infatuated with the possibilities of lighter-than-air travel. For modest fees, he demonstrates balloon ascents to mobs of gawping yokels...
...victory was not Freeman's alone, of course. It took some gutty wins by lighter teammates to put him in position for the hero's role...
Stretch pants are still the uniform of the day, and there is currently a spirited debate comparing the virtues of Bogner Superstretch, which is warmer, and Spinnerin, which is lighter. In the end, the esthetics are the same. Advises Grosse Pointe Ski-Shop Manager Bob Sharpe: "A good fit is when you can tell if a coin in the gal's back pocket is heads or tails...
...bring it up to date, the Bushmaster will sport more powerful engines, enlarged cockpit windows, a lighter and stronger aluminum-alloy skin, a foot-operated hydraulic replacement of the old Tri-Motor's hand-operated "Johnny Brake," a larger stabilizer and a dorsal fin to reduce yaw, modern trim tabs, and interior rather than exterior control cables...