Recipient of the Grand Prix of the Académie Française, Wind, Sand and Stars captures the grandeur, danger, and isolation of flight. Its exciting account of air adventure, combined with lyrical prose and the spirit of a philosopher, makes it one of the most popular works ever written about flying. Translated by Lewis Galantière.
Wind, Sand and Stars
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle. Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Book Description
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
Product Description
About the Author
ANTOINE DE SAINT-EXUPÉRY, the "Winged Poet," was born in Lyon, France, in 1900. A pilot at twenty-six, he was a pioneer of commercial aviation and flew in the Spanish Civil War and World War II. His writings include The Little Prince, Wind, Sand and Stars, Night Flight, Southern Mail, and Airman's Odyssey. In 1944, while flying a reconnaissance mission for his French air squadron, he disappeared over the Mediterranean.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Browse and search another edition of this book.
First Sentence
In 1926 I was enrolled as student airline pilot by the Latecoere Company, the predecessors of Aeropostale (now Air France) in the operation of the line between Toulouse, in southwestern France, and Dakar, in French West Africa. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
In 1926 I was enrolled as student airline pilot by the Latecoere Company, the predecessors of Aeropostale (now Air France) in the operation of the line between Toulouse, in southwestern France, and Dakar, in French West Africa. Read the first page
Explore More
Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is one of the best non-fiction adventure books that I have read. The writing is clear and very desciptive, evoking the wonder and excitement of pioneer flying in the early art of the 20th century. Saint-Exupery's comments on life are very wise.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
An absolutely brilliant work. Keep in mind that many of the bad reviews here were for a different version/translation of this book. This one is almost twice as long and sticks far better to the author's orginal work.
This collection of stories is the perfect bedtime reading. You can finish off each story in an hour or so and drift to sleep with dreams of adventure and travel. The author relates the early days of air travel, when the pilots were quite often taking their lives in their own hands each time they took flight. Crash landings in the Sahara were part of job, and rather commonplace for those daring pilots that dared to carry mail and supplies over the great desert.
The author writes in a simple and magical prose that carries all readers to the co-pilot seat on these amazing true adventures.
It is rare to find an individual who lived such an amazing life as Saint-Exupery, and rarer still to find one who could write about their experiences with such clarity, beauty and detail.
Highly recommended. A great treasure of literature.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Antoine de Saint-Exupery was one of the most interesting figures of 20th century literature. He wrote The Little Prince, a children's book that sold 200,000 copies in the U.S. alone in one year several years ago, and was also the author of several novels and memoirs, all relating to flying, of which this is one. The author was MIA over his beloved France while flying for the Free French Air Force in 1944 (after having to argue to be allowed to fly in combat; he was considered a national treasure). It appears the site of the wreck was discovered in the water just off the Riviera a couple of years ago, though no one's certain.
Wind, Sand and Stars is a recounting of several episodes in Saint-Exupery's life as a pilot, told to illustrate his view of the world, and especially his opinions of what makes life worth living, and who we are or should be. He was a wonderfully insightful individual, and his prose and ideas are the sort of thing you'll carry with you for years. I would highly recommend this book.
Wind, Sand and Stars is a recounting of several episodes in Saint-Exupery's life as a pilot, told to illustrate his view of the world, and especially his opinions of what makes life worth living, and who we are or should be. He was a wonderfully insightful individual, and his prose and ideas are the sort of thing you'll carry with you for years. I would highly recommend this book.
Want to see more reviews on this item?
›
Go to Amazon.com to see all 78 reviews
4.4 out of 5 stars
Most recent customer reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars
For adolescent romantics
Perhaps the translation was bad? After all, the book won a big prize in France. But for me the prose was pedestrian when not purple. Read more
Published on Dec 2 2003 by O. Lund
5.0 out of 5 stars
I loved it.
It was sometimes slow, sometimes pretentious and not a very long book at all. I don't really know what I liked about it... Read more
Published on Feb 23 2003 by "nickhull"
2.0 out of 5 stars
Was Very Boring
I thought the book was horrible cuz it was nothing that i thought was exciting and also cuz it was very hard to read i hated it but that is my opinion but everyone i asked said... Read more
Published on Oct 1 2002
1.0 out of 5 stars
Wind, Sand & Stars
I can't believe this book is rated so highly! I though it was awful and found the writing very boring. I would read several pages and completely forget what I just read. Read more
Published on Aug 23 2002
4.0 out of 5 stars
Wind-swept Whimsy
I'd been meaning to read Antoine de Saint-Exupery's 1939 tale of his early flying days for many years. Read more
Published on April 16 2002 by M. Mcfarland
5.0 out of 5 stars
Enjoy the wonder of unadulterated genius at work.
I believe this is the greatest book by one of the best authors of all time. To open a St. Exupery book is to think of the spring sun on a cold, cloudy January day. Read more
Published on Mar 14 2002 by Jerald R Lovell
5.0 out of 5 stars
Poetic Pilot Philosopher
St. Exupery's words beg you to drink them like hot tea. His language is as beautiful as the landscape it describes. Read more
Published on Feb 26 2002 by R. Poister
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wind, Sand and Stars
I lulled over Wind Sand and Stars for a long time, savoring each word to the last drop! Intensely reflective, philosophical and insightful, I felt like I was right in the desert... Read more
Published on Jan 23 2002 by old_hyperbolic_squiggly
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beautifully written, full of meaning
In Wind, Sand, and Stars, every word has its place, every sentence has its purpose. It is magical, utterly enjoyable, a triumph of the imagination. Read more
Published on Dec 6 2001 by Dan Reedy
5.0 out of 5 stars
You will soar with him
Just a wonderful book, well thought out wonderfully written. A book you will think about long after you have finished it.
Published on Nov 2 2001 by Kim F. Hill
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
