The Glorious Flight: Across the Channel with Louis Bleriot

As others have noted, it IS a quiet book, but my children (3rd grade, 2nd grade, and pre-K) enjoyed it very much (although my 3rd grader, looking over my shoulder, said it was just 3 stars because he isn't that interested in planes - ahem). Anyway, I used this book as part of a short aviation unit study this summer after we came back from Nags Head - we studied the Wright Brothers, Amelia Earhart, and Louis Bleriot. I absolutely love the illustrations in this book, the author uses a fairly muted palate, and we used butcher paper, various brown paints, and white paint applied with sponges and cotton balls to make our own plane-lost-in-the-clouds picture. We also used the book to discuss persistence & passion (the Wright Brothers made 3 trips to Kitty Hawk before they were successful, but Louis Bleriot had - if memory serves me correctly, which admittedly it hasn't been doing lately - 8 or 9 "failures" before he was successful building his plane). We also discussed France, being an inventor, the English Channel & the Chunnel, and Roman Numbers. I think the beautiful illustrations, combined with the book's encouraging and REAL LIFE message of learning from your mistakes and not giving up when you are trying to achieve your dreams, makes this book a worthwhile addition to any child's library. As the mother of a somewhat perfectionist daughter, I can't have too many books like this on my bookshelf.

Alice and Martin Provensen certainly had a good run in the early 1980s. First there was their Newberry-winning-Caldecott-Honor-attaining, "A Visit to William Blake's Inn" (which I'm not a fan, but oh well) and then their very own Caldecott winning, "The Glorious Flight". If you were randomly scanning the shelves of your local library and you stumbled upon this book, you might consider it an early picture book. The story's muted color schemes and simple characters give it a particularly classic feel, unlike anything else you might find in contemporary tales. This may not be THE most exciting book in the world (the Provensens excel in moods and tones rather than fast-paced adrenaline rushes) but there is a lovely feel to it that outweighs its occasional lapses into deadened flatness. Voila, Monsieur Louis Bleriot (who, for purposes that remain unclear, is referred to here as a very un-French "Mr."). A well-to-do man of France in 1901, Bleriot lives a contented existence with his spouse, five children, cat, dog, and cockatoo. Just your average bourgeoisie. All that changes one day when up above the city streets Bleriot spots a remarkable new invention. It's a great white airship circling the skies. Suddenly, much like Toad in "Wind in the Willows", Bleriot is entranced and mesmerized by the contraption. Says our hero, "I, too, will build a flying machine". The book chronicles his various attempts, each growing more sophisticated as Bleriot himself grows more learned. Finally, he enters a contest to be the first man to fly across the English Channel and, after some tense moments, succeeds and wins. Says the text, "Truly, it was a glorious flight". Indeed. It's a nice story too. In many of their books, the Provenses' style strikes the reader as a bit lacking in basic human emotions and warmth. In this case, however, it works perfectly within the text. The illustrations in this story are like old posed family portraits, only with a twinge more life and verve to them. The colors are, as I said before, muted. Yet somehow this doesn't bore the reader or even so much as put them to sleep. I think this may have something to do with the fact that this book, in the end, is a biography of sorts. Based on true events, the unnatural style and shades fit better than over-the-top bright/gaudy colors ever could have. It's somewhat backhanded praise, but praise just the same when I say that in spite of my deep down dislike of the Provensens' other books, I could not help but like, "The Glorious Flight". It really isn't going to deeply capture the attention of any children but those interested in history, France, or flying machines. A nice story that somehow garnered itself a Caldecott Award. And it's nice to page through.

This children's book is an account of the famous French aviation pioneer, Louis Bleriot (1872-1936) who was the first person to fly across the English Channel (on July 25, 1909). The book won the 1984 Caldecott Medal for best illustrations in a book for children. IT is an excellent book for use in a discussion of history, particularly the history of aviation.