Los Angeles: Ivan Deach, Jr., 1934.
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Hardcover. First edition. (Stated "Autograph First Edition.") Octavo. 218pp. Frontispiece halftone portrait of Bessie Coleman. Illustrated with photographic halftones as full pages and in-text vignettes throughout. Black cloth illustrated and titled in gilt. Promotional flyer for the book tipped to front fly. Fine. Signed by Powell on the dedication leaf.
World War I veteran Powell was fascinated by flight, and soon became one of aviation’s most important advocates of black pilots. He organized the first African-American flight show, created a movie about a young aviator, started a flight school and a monthly aviation journal, and wrote this “novel” (really a veiled memoir) about a young man learning to fly, all with the goal of encouraging African-Americans to participate in the new industry, which he believed had nearly limitless potential. The book is dedicated “To the memory of Bessie Coleman, the first Negro to fly an aeroplane successfully, who, although possessed of all the feminine charms that man admires in the opposite sex, also displayed courage equal to that of the most daring men.” A wonderful book of optimism and enthusiasm for aviation, well before the creation of the Tuskegee Airmen. Very uncommon.
Item #449558
