General Chuck Yeager, the greatest test pilot of them all -- the first man to fly faster than the speed of sound . . .the World War II flying ace who shot down a Messerschmitt jet with a prop-driven P-51 Mustang . . .the hero who defined a certain quality that all hotshot fly-boys of the postwar era aimed to achieve: the right stuff.<br><br><br><br>Now Chuck Yeager tells his whole incredible life story with the same &quot;wide-open, full throttle&quot; approach that has marked his astonishing career.&#160;&#160;What it was really like enaging in do-or-die dogfights over Nazi Europe.&#160;&#160;How after being shot over occupied France, Yeager somehow managed to escape.&#160;&#160;The amazing behind-the-scenes story of smashing the sound barrier despite cracked ribs from a riding accident days before.<br><br><br><br>The entire story is here, in Yeager's own words, and in wondeful insights from his wife and those friends and colleagues who have known him best.&#160;&#160;It is the personal and public story of a man who settled for nothing less than excellence, a one-of-a-kind portrait of a true American hero.