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Audiobook edition · 17 h 9 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What does France look like when the sky becomes a new frontier?
In A Tour of France by Aeroplane, H. de Graffigny invites you to see a country from above. Fields form patterns, rivers become lines, and towns gather around a church or bridge. The familiar landscape takes on a different shape as the aeroplane opens a new way of looking.
This adventure belongs to the early twentieth century, when powered flight is new and full of promise. Behind the views of France stands a machine that demands skill and faces uncertain weather. De Graffigny brings together the appeal of travel and the wonder of invention, offering a glimpse of how an earlier age imagines the sky.
What you’ll discover
- France seen from above Watch fields, rivers, and towns become patterns that a traveller on the ground cannot see.
- The promise of flight Enter an age when the aeroplane makes the sky feel newly open to exploration.
- Landscapes and landmarks Let coasts, mountains, cities, and old monuments draw your attention across the country.
- Adventure behind the views Discover the risk, noise, weather, and skill that give early flying its drama.
- A past age's imagination Explore how a writer of science and invention pictures new machines and his country.
Who will love it
You will love this book if you enjoy early aviation, friendly rivalries and armchair travel through French towns, coasts and mountains. It suits anyone curious about how flight first met tourism.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- An argument in the grandstand at Reims
- A club is founded and a route is drawn
- A short history of the conquest of the air
- Two rivals build their machines
- Aérovilla opens and a father objects
- Sabotage at takeoff and a night flight to Amiens
- Across the north and Normandy
- From Brittany to the Mediterranean
- What the book is really about
- How the story is told
Who’s who
- Robert de La Tour-MiranneA rich young marquis and sportsman who founds the Aero-Tourist Club and wants to prove that airplanes make the best way to see France.
- Jean OutremécourtThe calm vice president and school friend of the marquis, nicknamed Father Tranquille, who flies with his sister and keeps his friends steady.
- René de MédouvilleThe cheerful secretary general and patron of inventors, who acts as tour guide and recites the history of every town they pass.
- Claude RéviliodThe Little Biscuit Maker, a rich and stubborn fan of airships, who builds his own craft to defeat the airplane tourists.
- Martin LandouxA lean, good-humored mechanic and builder of biplanes who trains the club and fights to keep the tour alive.
- Charles BaderCalled Charlot, a crooked-backed mechanic who sells his skills to anyone who pays and sabotages for money.
- Georges DamblinAn engineer and keen monoplane supporter who serves as the tour's quartermaster, scouting landing places ahead of the fleet.
- MédrivalA young, impatient monoplane pilot who loves speed and asks every morning how many kilometers lie ahead.
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- Large print hardcover
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Le Tour de France en aéroplane
Thirteen pilots lead an airplane caravan across France while a rival biscuit heir champions his airship.
Challenging10–20 hours to readfrançais
Excellent
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In short
Imagine a summer evening in 1909 on the plain of Bétheny, where crowds cheer as the first flying men break record after record. Three young friends in the stands decide the airplane is good for more than racing round pylons.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
An argument in the grandstand at Reims
The story opens at the Great Champagne Aviation Week at Bétheny, in late August 1909. Crowds shout for Paulhan, Curtis, Blériot and Farman as old records crumble.
Three young friends watch from the front rows. Robert de La Tour-Miranne is a rich sportsman. Jean Outremécourt is his calm school friend. René de Médouville is the cheerful patron of poor inventors. On the train back to Reims, Claude Réviliod, the Little Biscuit Maker, calls airplanes acrobats' toys and praises airships for their safety.
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Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 13 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- Language
- français
- Level
- Challenging
Cite this edition
Graffigny, H. de. A Tour of France by Aeroplane. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/a-tour-of-france-by-aeroplane.
Graffigny, H. de. (2026). A tour of France by aeroplane. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/a-tour-of-france-by-aeroplane
Graffigny, H. de. A Tour of France by Aeroplane. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/a-tour-of-france-by-aeroplane.
@book{graffigny2026tour,
author = {Graffigny, H. de},
title = {A Tour of France by Aeroplane},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/a-tour-of-france-by-aeroplane}
}
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What is A Tour of France by Aeroplane about?
It follows the members of a new Aero-Tourist Club who fly a fleet of early airplanes around France in 1910 style, visiting towns, coasts and mountains, while a rival tries to prove an airship does better.
Who are the main characters in A Tour of France by Aeroplane?
The Marquis de La Tour-Miranne leads the club, with friends Outremécourt and Médouville, the builder Martin Landoux, and the rival Claude Réviliod, a biscuit heir who flies an airship.
Is A Tour of France by Aeroplane a true story?
No, the characters and plot are fiction. Real people such as the Wright brothers, Blériot, Farman and Santos-Dumont appear in the history, and the places, dates and facts about France are drawn from real sources.
The author
H. de Graffigny
French science writer and novelist
H. de Graffigny was the pen name of Raoul Marquis, a French writer who lived from 1863 to 1934. He wrote about science, technology and aviation in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. His works included A Tour of France by Aeroplane. He lived in France.
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