In The Girl Aviator and the Phantom Airship (originally published in 1911), Peggy Prescott and her brother Roy must win the $5,000 grand prize at an air show before a scheming banker forecloses on their aunt’s Long Island farm.
From the book’s dustcover, “Peggy and Roy are two orphans who drop out of school and spend every last dollar they have to fulfill their father’s dying wish— to construct a new type of aeroplane, better and more reliable than any other. With the help of their best friends Jess and Jimsy, can they get their Golden Butterfly in the air and win the $5,000 Young Aviator’s Prize before the scheming banker Simon Harding forecloses on their aunt’s Long Island farm? Or will Simon’s son Fanning carry off the prize with the Phantom Airship he’s constructing in secret with his unsavory helpers?”
A “Note from Aunt Claire” kicks off this third selection in the series with the right amount of historical context so today’s young readers will get a better understanding of what kids their age were reading more than 100 years ago.
Written for kids 9-12 year old, The Girl Aviator and the Phantom Airship is published by Laboratory Books. Priced at $16.95, it is available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or IndieBound.
The best part of the book is that it was first published in 1911, a time when too many would have us believe there was little or no encouragement of women and girls outside traditional roles, but discouragement, nor of the idea that boys and girls (men and women) could work together as peers and equals. (Definitely not this girl’s experience of aviation!)
Recommend giving Peggy’s and Roy’s story to a young lady in your life, regardless whether she has (so far) shown an interest in aviation. It is a life lesson told in a fun way – and might get her interested.