Wind Flyers by Angela Johnson and Loren Long (Illustrator)

I'm in awe of the creators of this book. 

A young girl tells the story of her great, great uncle, a man who was was passionate about flying as a child. He became a pilot with the Tuskegee Airman during the war, and a crop duster afterwards.  It's the uncle's experiences that compel us to read - his passion for flying, his challenges during the war, and at the same time as we learn about him, this book takes on powerful issues.

Racism:
"Air force didn't want us at first.
Only four squadrons like us," he says,
touching his mahogany face.

War:

This book is a sublime marriage between text and image. If the one doesn't take your breath away, the other will. So much is revealed in a few words or an image. 

Look at this image showing the boy's desolation at the end of his first flight into the magical air. 

And finally, see how much love and tenderness is captured between the two generations in this poignant image. 

I'm telling you, these two artists have as much magic in them as the air does.