Describes the early South American-European mail service, air service to North Africa, and the bravery of French fliers in the face of the Nazi invasion.

The World War II aviator and author of The Little Prince tells his true story of flying a reconnaissance plane during the Battle of France in 1940. When the Germans first invaded France in May of 1940, the French Air Force had a mere fifty reconnaissance crews, twenty-three of which served in Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s Group II/33. After only a few days, seventeen of the crews in Saint-Exupéry’s unit had already perished. Flight to Arras is the harrowing story of a single mission over the French town of Arras, an endeavor Saint-Exupéry realized the futility of even as he witnessed it unfolding. Filled with tension, emotion, philosophy, and historical detail, and penned by a master storyteller, this extraordinary memoir serves as a record of a little-known chapter of the Second World War, and an unforgettable portrait of the brave souls who fought despite desperate odds.

The first English translation of one German military pilot’s experience before, during, and after World War II flying for the Third Reich. Johannes Kaufmann’s career was an exciting one. He may have been an ordinary Luftwaffe pilot but he served during an extraordinary time with distinction. Serving for a decade through both peacetime and wartime, his memoir sheds light on the immense pressures of the job. In this never-before-seen translation of a rare account of life in the Luftwaffe, Kaufmann takes the reader through his time in service, from his involvement in the annexation of the Rhineland, the attack on Poland, fighting against American heavy bombers in the Defense of the Reich campaign. He also covers his role in the battles of Arnhem and the Ardennes, and the D-Day landings, detailing the intricacies of military tactics, flying fighter planes and the challenges of war. His graphic descriptions of being hopelessly lost in thick cloud above the Alps, and of following a line of telegraph poles half-buried in deep snow while searching for a place to land on the Stalingrad front are proof that the enemy was not the only danger he had to face during his long flying career. Kaufmann saw out the war from the early beginnings of German expansion right through to surrender to the British in 1945. An Eagle’s Odyssey is a compelling and enlightening read, Kaufmann’s account offers a rarely heard perspective on one of the core experiences of the Second World War.

Fasten your seatbelt to experience the spectacle and solitude of flying high in the Andes in this novel from the author of The Little Prince. No writer has equaled Saint-Exupéry in describing the perilous and poetic experience of flying, in submission to what he calls “those damn elemental divinities—night, day, mountain, sea and storm.” In this gripping, beautifully written novel inspired by his experience as a pilot in South America, he tells of the brave men who pilot night mail planes from Patagonia, Chile, and Paraguay to Argentina in the early days of commercial aviation. They are impelled to perform their routine acts of heroism by a steely chief named Rivière, whose extraordinary character is revealed through the dramatic events of a single night. Preface by André Gide. Translated by Stuart Gilbert. “The book stands out by reason of the quality of its style, the beauty of the passages in which flight is described better than it ever has been before, but more especially because of the emotions of the men of heroic mold.”—André Maurois, Saturday Review

The autobiography of a black American graduate of Tuskegee Army Flying School who served as a pilot in the 99th Pursuit Squadron, offering a personal account of what it was like to be a black pilot in WWII and the Korean War. For general readers. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

The little prince introduces himself and talks about his tiny planet and his beautiful flower.

The incredible untold story of the first flight around the World in 1924 and a biography of the most controversial military officer ever, General Billy Mitchell, who saved military aviation from destruction by the politicians.

A delightful collection of inspiring quotations from the mind of Antoine de Saint- Exupéry, author of The Little Prince. “One sees clearly only with the heart. Anything essential is invisible to the eyes.” For more than sixty years, this insight from The Little Prince has been quoted in more than 130 languages by fans around the world. Now, for the first time, quotations from the collected works and letters of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry are presented in a charming gift edition. Six chapters—“Happiness,” “Friendship,” “Responsibility,” “Fortitude,” “Love,” and “What Is Essential”—offer inspirational and thought-provoking words about the subjects held most dear by the author. A perfect gift for graduates—or for anyone who wants gentle guidance.