San Diego AeroSpace Museum

Recommended Publications

Below is a list of publications recommended by the San Diego Air & Space Museum for all ages.

Preschool/Ages 4-8/Ages 9-12/Ages 12 and Up/Series

Children's Books (Preschool)

  • Barton, Byron. Airport, Harper Trophy; ISBN: 0064431452; Reprint edition, 1987.
  • Barton, Byron. Planes, Harper Collins Juvenile Books; ISBN: 0694011665; Board edition, 1998.
  • Bruna, Dick (Illustrator), Chikako Noma (Editor), Patricia Crampton. Miffy Goes Flying, Kodansha International; ISBN: 1538362218; Board edition, 1998.
  • Bursik, Rose. Amelia's Fantastic Flight, Henry Holt & Company; ISBN: 0805033866; Reprint edition, 1994.
  • Crews, Donald. Flying, Mulberry Books; ISBN: 0688092357, 1989.
  • Michelini, Carlo (Illustrator), Patrizia Malfatti. Look Inside an Airplane, Platt & Munk; ISBN: 0448424010, 2000.
  • Mitton, Tony, Ant Parker (Illustrator). Roaring Rockets, Larousse Kingfisher Chambers; ISBN: 0753453053, 2000.
  • Wilson-Max, Ken. Big Silver Space Shuttle, Cartwheel Books; ISBN: 0439136563, 2000.
  • Wilson-Max, Ken. Little Red Plane, Cartwheel Books; ISBN: 0439136539; Board edition, 2000.
  • Smee, Nicola, Andy Ellis, Sally Grindley. Freddie Goes on an Airplane, Barrons Educational Series; ISBN: 0764115804; 1st edition, 2000.
  • Yaccarino, Dan. Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! I'm Off to the Moon, Scholastic Trade; ISBN: 0439365414, 2002.

Children's Books (Ages 4-8)

  • Bingham, Caroline. Big Book of Airplanes, DK Publishing; ISBN: 0789465213, 2001.
  • Brown, Don. One Giant Leap: The Story of Neil Armstrong, Houghton Mifflin Co; ISBN: 0618152393, 2001.
  • Brown, Don (Illustrator). Ruth Law Thrills a Nation, Ticknor & Fields; ISBN: 0395664047, 1993.
  • Gutman, Anne & Georg Hallensleben. Lisa's Airplane Trip, Knopf; ISBN: 0375811141, 2001.
  • Hopkinson, Deborah & Deborah Lanino (Illustrator). Maria's Comet, Atheneum; ISBN: 0689815018, 1999.
  • McGrory, Anik. Mouton's Impossible Dream, Gulliver Books; ISBN: 0152021957, 2000.
  • Munsch, Robert N. & Michael Martchenko (Illustrator). Angela's Airplane, Firefly Books (J); ISBN: 155037026X, 1988.
  • Also available in Spanish: El Avion De Angela, Munsch, Robert N., Michael Martchenko (Illustrator), Shirley Langer (Translator). Annick Pr; ISBN: 1550371894, 1991.
  • Ride, Sally & Susan Okie. To Space and Back, Lothrop Lee & Shepard; ISBN: 0688091121; Reprint edition, 1989.
  • Ryan, Pam Munoz & Brian Selznick (Illustrator). Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride: Based on a True Story, Scholastic Trade; ISBN: 059096075X, 1999.
  • Seibold, J. Otto (Illustrator), Vivian Walsh. Penguin Dreams, Chronicle Books; ISBN: 0811825582, 1999.

Children's Books (Ages 9-12)

  • Blackburn, Ken. The World Record Paper Airplane Book. Workman Publishing Company; ISBN: 1563056313, 1994.
  • Burleigh, Robert & Bill Wylie (Illustrator). Into the Air: The Story of the Wright Brothers' First Flight, Silver Whistle; ISBN: 0152024921; Comic edition, 2002.
  • Curlee, Lynn. Ships of the Air, Houghton Mifflin Co (Juv); ISBN: 0395693381, 1996.
  • Cummins, Julie. Tomboy of the Air: Daredevil Pilot Blanche Stuart Scott, Harper-Collins Juvenile Books; ISBN: 0060291389, 2001.
  • Dyson, Marianne J., Dave Klug (Illustrator), Buzz Aldrin. Space Station Science: Life in Free Fall, Scholastic Trade; ISBN: 0590058894, 1999.
  • du Bois, William Pene & Scott Foresman. The Twenty-One Balloons, (Pearson K-12); ISBN: 0140320970; Reprint edition, 1986.
  • Hawkes, Nigel. Rockets and Other Spacecraft (How Science Works), John Farndon, Alex Pang (Illustrator), Millbrook Pr Trade; ISBN: 0761308407, 2000.
  • Ingold, Jeanette. Airfield, Puffin; ISBN: 0141312165, 2001
  • Jennings, Terry. Planes Gliders Helicopters and Other Flying Machines, Kingfisher Books; ISBN: 1856978699, 1993.
  • Maynard, Christopher & Lynton Gardiner (Photographer). Mighty Machines: Airplane, DK Pub Merchandise; ISBN: 0789460750; 1st edition, 2000.
  • Mellett, Peter. Flight (Fantastic Facts), Southwater Pub; ISBN: 1842153226, 2000.
  • Naham, Andrew & Dave King (Photographer). Eyewitness: Flying Machine, DK Publishing; ISBN: 0789457660; 1st edition, 2000.
  • Owen, David. Lighter Than Air: An Illustrated History of the Development of Hot-Air Balloons and Airships, Book Sales; ISBN: 0785810455, 1999.
  • Plantz, Connie. Bessie Coleman: First Back Woman Pilot, Enslow Publishers, Inc.; ISBN: 0766015459, 2001.
  • Rinard, Judith E. The Story of Flight, Firefly Books (J); ISBN: 1552976424, 2002.
  • Stott, Carole, Steve Gorton (Illustrator), Carole Scott (Photographer), Sara Ashun (Photographer). Eyewitness: Space Exploration, DK Publishing; ISBN: 0789458586; 1st edition, 2000.
  • Wunsch, Susi Trautmann. The Adventures of Sojourner : The Mission to Mars That Thrilled the World, Mikaya Pr; ISBN: 0965049361, 1998.

Ages 12 & Up

  • Berg, A. Scott. Lindbergh. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1998.
    One of the finest, most articulate publications on one of history's most influential figures.
  • Dahl, Roald. Going Solo, Puffin; ISBN: 0141303107; Reissue edition (January 1999)
  • Dean, Francis H. America's Hundred Thousand: U.S. Production Fighters of World War II. Atglen, PA.: Schiffer Publishing, Ltd., 1997.
    A comprehensive analysis of the United States aircraft industry during the Second World War, with emphasis on fighter production.
  • Dick, Ron, photos by Dan Patterson. American Eagles: A History of the United States Air Force. Charlottesville, VA.: Howell Press, Inc., 1997.
    Compilation of beautiful photography of the US Air Force Museum's collection with detailed captioning.
  • Doolittle, General James H. and Carroll V. Glines. I Could Never Be So Lucky Again. New York: Bantom Books, 1991.
    The fascinating biography of aviation legend Jimmy Doolittle.
  • Ethell, Jeff, Robert Grinsell, et. al. The Great Book of World War II Airplanes. Tokyo: Zokeisha Publications, Ltd., 1984.
    A synopsis of selected significant aircraft of the Second World War, accompanied by beautiful illustrations by noted aviation artist Rikyu Watanabe.
  • Flintham, Victor. Air Wars and Aircraft: A Detailed Record of Air Combat, 1945 to Present. New York: Facts on File, 1990.
    Detailed account, including order of battle, of aircraft and their combat employment, from every major military conflict to lesser known single clashes.
  • Freedman, Russell. The Wright Brothers: How They Invented the Airplane. Holiday House; ISBN: 082341082X; Reissue edition (April 1994)
  • Grossnick, Roy A. United States Naval Aviation, 1910-1995. Washington, DC.: Naval Historical Center, 1997.
    Complete chronological history of US Naval Aviation, with excellent appendices for research and reference.
  • Gunston, Bill. World Encyclopedia of Aero Engines. Somerset, England: Haynes Publishing, 1998.
    A comprehensive overview of the significant, unique and lesser-known aircraft powerplants throughout history.
  • Leiser, Edward. San Diego Flying Days. Vols. I-VIII. San Diego: San Diego Air & Space Museum.
    Unpublished compilations of aviation-related events in San Diego from 1887-1934. Future volumes pending.
  • Lindbergh, Charles A. The Spirit of St. Louis. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1953.
    The famous flight of the Spirit of St. Louis in the words of the history maker himself.
  • Morrow, Jr., John H. The Great War in the Air: Military Aviation from 1909 to 1921. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institute Press, 1993. An outstanding thesis on early military aviation, from the establishment of the world's major air forces to the implications of the use of the airplane in war in post-World War I Europe and America.
  • Nathan, Amy & Eileen Collins. Yankee Doodle Gals: Women Pilots of World War II, National Geographic Society; ISBN: 0792282167, 2001.
  • Taylor, Theodore. The Flight of Jesse Leroy Brown, Avon Books; ISBN: 0380976897, 1998.
  • Toliver, Raymond F., and Trevor J. Constable. Fighter Aces of the U.S.A. Atglen, PA.: Schiffer Publishing, Ltd., 1997.
  • University Aviation Association. Collegiate Aviation Guide, University Aviation Association; ISBN: 0967860202, 1999.
  • Wagner, William. Ryan, the Aviator. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1971.
    A biographer of aviation pioneer T. Claude Ryan and the company he founded and guided.
  • Wolfe, Tom. The Right Stuff. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1979.
    An exciting and personable look at the history of the American Space program and the space race, from test flights after the Second World War through the Apollo program.
  • White, Graham. Allied Aircraft Piston Engines of World War II. Warrendale, PA.: Society of Automotive Engineers, Inc., 1995.

Series

  • Aero Detail Series. Japan: Dainippon Kaiga Company.
    Meticulous up-close color photography and illustrations of some of the more significant aircraft in history.
  • Ginter Naval Fighters Series. Simi Valley, CA.: Steve Ginter.
  • Janes All the World's Aircraft. Surrey, England: Jane's Information Group, Ltd.
    Annual comprehensive reference to aircraft of the world, published continuously and annually since 1909.
  • Juptner U.S. Civil Aircraft Series. Fallbrook, CA.: Aero Publishers, Inc., 1981.
    Comprehensive set of volumes outlining the history of civil aircraft from the 1920s through the 1960s.
  • Osprey Aircraft of the Aces Series. Oxford, England: Osprey Publishing.
  • Putnam Aircraft Series. England: G.P. Putnam's Sons.
    Comprising dozens of volumes, each focusing on a specific manufacturer, nation, military branch, aircraft type, war, or civil or commercial usage. Excellent for quick reference to manufacturer histories, airline histories, aircraft construction and serial numbers, and flight characteristics and specifications.
  • Time-Life Epic of Flight Series. Alexandria, VA.: Time-Life Books.
    Squadron Signal In Action Series. Carrollton, TX.: Squadron Signal Publications.
  • Squadron Signal Walk Around Series. Carrollton, TX.: Squadron Signal Publications.
    Detailed photographs in color and black & white of some of the more significant aircraft in history, as well as color profiles.
  • Warbird Tech Series. North Branch, MN.: Specialty Press.