Airman's Odyssey Book

130814: three novels that together give the best and worst of saint-exupery. the best is pure, romantic, adventures of flight in the early 20th century, adventures that remind readers of an era, not so long ago, when to fly, to pilot, was a grand romantic experience, dangerous, transcendent, amazing and beautiful. the first time flown i was about two to Kauai, then seven to Europe, then every year to Honolulu, fourteen to New Zealand, to LA, the usual interisland in Hawai'i, when only Honolulu could land international flights, so the romance of flight never was fabulous as it had been for my father- who had never flown until 29 or so. i have never wanted to be a pilot. i remember more jet lag and distances escaped and not very good food. the worst in this collection is when St-Exupery ventures into philosophical if not religious discourse on his idea of Man, his ideals of heroism, fraternity, sacrifice etc... but this is mostly the last section of 'flight to arras', the third novel, and you can skip it without much loss...

one time, flying southwest from Vancouver or Seattle to Lihue, Kauai, we happened to takeoff just before sunset, and as we flew i remember watching from my window seat, the longest sunset i might ever see, a feeling of being suspended in sunset golden light, a feeling of magical transport, the flight smooth, unhindered by turbulence or crowded by clouds... and this is the most romantic flight ever taken...

read this because of this: