Today is the 103rd anniversary of a daring flight by Ruth Law, a female pilot and the subject of one of today’s perfectly paired picture books. As so many Americans anticipate holiday flights next week, I thought it would be interesting to look back to the dawn of aviation, and the roles two courageous female pilots played in that history.
Fearless Flyer: Ruth Law and Her Flying Machine
Author: Heather Lang
Illustrator: Raúl Colón
Publisher/Date: Calkins Creek, an imprint of Boyds Mills Press/2016
Ages: 5-8
Themes: flying, women, biography, courage
Short Synopsis (from Goodreads):
On November 19, 1916, at 8:25 a.m., Ruth Law took off on a flight that aviation experts thought was doomed. She set off to fly nonstop from Chicago to New York City. Sitting at the controls of her small bi-plane, exposed to the elements, Law battled fierce winds and numbing cold. When her engine ran out of fuel, she glided for two miles and landed at Hornell, New York. Even though she fell short of her goal, she had broken the existing cross-country distance record. And with her plane refueled, she got back in the air and headed for New York City where crowds waited to greet her. In this well-researched, action-packed picture book, Heather Lang and Raúl Colón recreate a thrilling moment in aviation history. Includes an afterword with archival photographs.
Read a review at Kirkus Reviews.
The Flying Girl: How Aída de Acosta Learned to Soar
Author: Margarita Engle
Illustrator: Sara Palacios
Publisher/date: Atheneum Books for Young Readers (Simon & Schuster)/March 2018
Ages: 4-8
Themes: flying, first female pilot, biography, courage
Short Synopsis (from Goodreads):
In this beautiful picture book filled with soaring words and buoyant illustrations, award-winners Margarita Engle and Sara Palacios tell the inspiring true story of Aída de Acosta, the first woman to fly a motorized aircraft.
On a lively street in the lovely city of Paris, a girl named Aída glanced up and was dazzled by the sight of an airship. Oh, how she wished she could soar through the sky like that! The inventor of the airship, Alberto, invited Aída to ride with him, but she didn’t want to be a passenger. She wanted to be the pilot.
Aída was just a teenager, and no woman or girl had ever flown before. She didn’t let that stop her, though. All she needed was courage and a chance to try.
Read my review.
I paired these books because they both feature ground-breaking female pilots at the dawn of aviation, who conquered their fears and society’s expectations to soar to new heights. Each book focuses on the flight and events leading up to it, and both contain helpful backmatter about each pilot and her role in aviation history.
Wander, Ponder, Write 
I worked for the Air Force, so I am especially interested in female aviators. They are perfect reads for young girls who dream of flying. We have the National Women’s Aviation Hall of Fame (museum) in Dayton — not too far from my home. Nice pairing!
Thanks! I’d forgotten you’re in Dayton. My father was stationed at Wright-Patterson during WWII, where he met my mother, a Dayton native. I can’t even begin to imagine how the area has changed since that time, or even since I last visited in the late 1970s.
It has grown, but it still remain a city where you can drive on Far Hills from Centerville into the downtown with ease. We love it here because it is so charming and rich in the arts. The Air Force Museum is huge now with 4 -5 buildings. Major tourist site, along with the Dayton International Air Show.