Published in 1942, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry talks about his life, experience, thoughts and feelings about being a pilot in WWII, while on the defensive and with little hope of surviving. The novella follows one flight, and comments on both the flight itself (mechanically, strategically) and the war in general.

The adorable faux-philosophical book with delightfully whimsical moments was something I enjoyed a lot as a kid. I would imagine that much of its charm is due to my age when reading it though, and if I had read it for the first time now, I wouldn't be nearly as enchanted by the rose and the sheep and so on.