Books

Rare, suppressed first edition. Number 219 of 5000 copies printed in France. 245 pages; bound in publisher's light blue cloth, gilt lettering, borders on the cover. Probably a reviewers copy, with penciled notes on a back paste down and some pencil markings in the text, and thus surviving government suppression. Antoine de Saint-Exupery (1900-1944) was a aristocratic French writer, poet and pioneering aviator. He is most famous for 'The Little Prince', a novella and 'Night Flight'. He was a commercial pilot before World War II and joined the French Air Force before the invasion by the Germans. He was later with the Free French Air Force and during a mission his plane was downed over the Mediterranean Sea in July 1944. 'Pilote De Guerre' was rigidly suppressed by the Vichy government and the Nazi occupiers due to the author's praise of a French Jewish pilot, Capt. Jean Israel, who he described as "among the squadron's bravest defenders". The book has the distinction of being banned by both the Vichy Government and the Free France Government under de Gaulle.

Pilote de guerre (Flight to Arras) is a memoir by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, recounting his experiences as a reconnaissance pilot in the French Air Force during the Battle of France in 1940. It provides a vivid portrayal of the