Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Antoine Marie Jean-Baptiste Roger, compte de Saint-Exupéry was a French pilot, poet and author. Born in Lyon, France on June 29, 1900, Saint-Exupéry dreampt of becoming a naval officer, but was refused admission to the French Naval Academy. Instead, he was called up by the French Air Force in 1921. Though not originally called up as a pilot, it was there he found his passion to fly airplanes.

After his stint in the Air Force, Saint-Exupéry became a licensed civil pilot in 1927. Shortly thereafter, he landed the job of flying the mail on a difficult and dangerous route from Toulouse, France to Dakar, Morocco.

While stationed in Dakar, Saint-Exupéry began writing to relieve the boredom between assignments. Courier Sud (Southern Mail) 1929, became his first published work and was largely autobiographical.

When the company folded in the early 1930's, Saint-Exupéry bounced around in several flying and non-flying jobs and continued to write about flying and adventure until France entered World War II in 1939. He was immediately called into active service and remained in the military until France surrendered in 1940.

He then left France for the United States and continued to write. His most famous work, Le Petit Prince (The Little Prince) 1943, was written during his stay in the U.S., and today remains one of the most translated books in the world.

Saint-Exupéry worked tirelessly to convince the United States to enter the War. Once they did, he joined the American Air Force. He was eventually stationed in North Africa in 1943. He was killed in action July 31st, 1944.

bibliography

• Courier Sud(Southern Mail) 1929
• Vol de Nuit(Night Flight) 1931
• Terre de Hommes(Wind, Sand, and Stars) 1939
• Pilote de Geurre(Flight to Arras) 1942
• Lettre à un Otage(Letter to a Hostage) 1943
• Le Petit Prince(The Little Prince) 1943
• Citadelle(The Wisdom of the Sands) posthumous

for more information

• Antoine de Saint-Exupéry – Wikipedia Entry
• The Little Prince
• The Quotable Saint-Exupéry