Beautiful books, gift ideas for Christmas 2024.

The National Navy, a universe of contrasts

Between modernity and tradition, sea legs and land sickness, solitude and solidarity, Luc-Christophe Guillerm captures through his camera the life of the crews of the French Navy, a whole universe of contrasts. This book with striking photos and text presents more than 30 years of missions at sea aboard ships as different as the schooner Belle-Poule, the nuclear submarine Saphir and the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle. Aircraft are well represented. Rafale Marine, Lynx, Alouette III, E-2C Hawkeye, Super Frelon punctuate the pages between sea and sky which sometimes merge. The 250 photos, often full page, are enhanced by the format of the book and the excellent quality paper. The author takes the reader into an intimate logbook, dotted with sensations of swell, scents where hot morning bread mixes with the smell of diesel typical of buildings of a certain age. A timeless travel diary. F.M.

The Grand Atlas of Astronomy (9th edition)

Large format for a big show. This is what this atlas of astronomy offers, which invites you to a real journey through space. This is the ninth edition of this monumental work. Already 100,000 copies sold. It is a mine of information highlighted by breathtaking iconography. We particularly liked the section listing 88 constellations with, for each of them, a precise map indicating their location in space as well as their stellar magnitude. G.R.

Order online: The Grand Atlas of Astronomy

Mirage IV, a sword for France

Reissue of a Docavia published in 2003, therefore before the withdrawal of service of the last Mirage IV, this work also has the particularity of being posthumous, its author having left us last June. Revised and expanded text, revised layout, new illustrations, with its 750 pages, its thickness of 6 cm, and its 4.5 kg, it is impressive. But its flawless content lives up to its subject. F.M.

Order online: Mirage IV, a sword for France

Hispanic Switzerland. The future of the legend

« The future with its legend “. The subtitle of this book dedicated to one of the most remarkable French industrialists of the 20^th century is simply brilliant. Michel Polacco, the author, not only has a sense of the formula, he knows his classics. Hispano-Suiza's DNA is indeed omnipresent in most major aeronautical programs, civil and military, current and in the making. In 2016, the prestigious brand faded behind Safran Transmission Systems. This book is even more essential. Because Hispano-Suiza was not only a manufacturer of luxury automobiles. He was a leading actor in the fabulous industrial adventure of the 20^th century, on the road, in the air, on the water and even on the rails. This is what Michel Polacco already showed in 1993, in the first edition of this book, through, in particular, an iconography of rare richness. In this new edition, we see how Hispano-Suiza has refocused on aeronautics. G.R.

Order online: Hispano Suiza. The future has its legend

World history of airliners

This is the third edition of Alain Pelletier's world history of airliners. And although it was published in June 2024, this reissue is dated. It did not benefit from the necessary update. Airbus has not yet decided to discontinue the A380, the A321LR and XLR are not winning and Boeing has not yet plunged into the crisis. This warning issued, the first decades of the story remain as well told by an author who mastered his subject (Alain Pelletier died in September 2024). The quality of the iconography and the technical sheets will delight readers. G.R.

Order online: World history of airliners