What French language aviation book would you like to see in English?

There is a series of French aviation comic books I would love to see in English, it seems a couple have been translated, but I reckon they would sell well in the English speaking world.

http://www.salimbeti.com/aviation/comics.htm

Now why does that not surprise me, Moze! However I wonder whether you and I would be deemed by the publishers to be “a viable market”? Answers on a single A4 sheet, you publisher members!

However unlike you, it’s the minutia – the rare, obscure, wierd and wonderful – that fascinates me. It never ceases to amaze me how many ‘one offs’ and single figure production runs emanated from France, particularly in the period 1920 to 1960, details of which seem to be largely unrecorded nowadays but emerge, like ghosts from the past, as I work my way throgh French aviation journals and newspapers from this period.

This would be my interest as well.:)

Graham: naturally I have in mind the original coyright. As AA says, I am just trying to ascertain what interest there might be before sounding out any potential publishers.

That’s what makes the writing/publishing world go around!

FULL CIRCLE eh-=the Financial Return

I suspect that Laurence is testing the water rather than being of a mind to jump in immediately! No doubt if the English language aviation books’ market shows little enthusiasm for books on aviation in France, the subject will rest there. But if there is some enthusiasm, both on the part of the English language aviation books’ market and those who publish books for that, then no doubt approaches can be made to the copyright holders of the French texts. I rather doubt that they would be averse to a wider market for their ‘labours of love’, not least because this has the potential to generate for them an enhanced financial return!

I would suspect that without consultation with the copyright holder/s there could well be issues with just translating anything and then publishing in any form. There is a whole matter of rights to be considered here.

Anything that has a wide range of smaller types would be great, and anything on the Nord 856 would be top bananas ;). Keep us posted if you brave the idea and i will put my name down for a copy please:cool:

This is one which I have – so good in illustrative terms, that it probably doesn’t need a translation. But my schoolboy French has its limitations !

http://www.aerostories.org/~aerobiblio/article50.html

Judging by recent cover prices for aviation books with a limited market published in the UK, not much less than the French cover prices – which, in the past, I thought to be exhorbitant, but I’m not so sure now. However, maybe less than 100 € which, I think, reflects the scarcity value of an out of print book being sold by specialist dealers online.

Understand that – some of us spent the €€€.
How much do you think it would be if translated/printed in English & a limited run to boot?

Which goes for any of the titles suggested above!

……out of print and being advertised for c.100 € each or more!

The book mentioned in Post #2 is excellewnt
There are two volumes 1944-64 & 1964 to 19xx. Easily translatable in very basiv french. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED if you can find em

It may well be worth talking to my pal Simon Parry at Red Kite Publications. Some titles might well be up his street.

For my part, I’d like to see “Ils etaient la….” (with apologies for lack of accents) by Jacqueline et Paul Martin.

I can read French – just – but having to struggle with working out exactly what I am reading…well….there must be an easier way!

Thanks for the suggestions so far. When we get a feel for what people might like, next will be to find an interested publisher. As AA moots, that might not be easy. It will need a real enthusiast – maybe one of our forum chums.

avion…
I’m sure I’d find the minutia fascinating, but I’d like to start with the mainstream types…out of parcticality more than anything else.
I’m a fan of the history of Gerneral Aviation types…and I’m sure France has some great examples.

I too regret that the like of that which you mention, J Boyle, seems to be unavailable yet. There are many monographs concerning the large and medium size aircraft manufacturers but very little on the small companies, one offs and home built aircraft (I suspect that a lot of the documentary material was lost during the second world war). However unlike you, it’s the minutia – the rare, obscure, wierd and wonderful – that fascinates me. It never ceases to amaze me how many ‘one offs’ and single figure production runs emanated from France, particularly in the period 1920 to 1960, details of which seem to be largely unrecorded nowadays but emerge, like ghosts from the past, as I work my way throgh French aviation journals and newspapers from this period.

I don’t care what language it was originally published in, but I’d love to have a nice one-volume English language book on French aircraft.

It need not be as exhaustive as British Civil Aircraft, I could do without the “one offs” and very minor types (and it seems they’ve had a lot of prototypes), but I’d like to get a nice rundown of the aircraft 1930 to 1990.

During my last trip to France I looked, but came up empty.

I’ve checked both of those and neither appears to be the tome that I have in mind. I think that it was published in the 1960s and, like Jackson, contained entries for all – or, at least, many – of the aircraft produced in France in the period up to its publication.

Returning now to the theme of this thread, the following is something of a wish list – something that I might address to Santa Claus and put up the chimney in December – and reflects laziness in wanting English translations when perfectly good editions are available in French. Anyhow, here goes!

Les Avions Caudron (vols. 1 & 2) – Hanet
Les Avions Caudron-Renault – Mihaly/Robinson
Chroniques de l’Aviation Nantaise 1908-1940 – Rabiller
Prototypes de l’Aviation Française (1945-1960) – Fayer
René Leduc – un Pionnier de la Propulsion à Réaction – Lacroze & Ricco
L’Aviation Légère en Algerie (1945-1962) – Jarrige

However whether it would be commercially viable to translate these from French into English and then publish them in the English speaking market, I cannot say (and I would have my doubts).