Sprouting Wings: The True Story of James Herman Banning, the First African American Pilot to Fly Across the United States
by Louisa Jaggar and Shari Becker, Illustrated by Floyd Cooper

James Herman Banning always dreamed of touching the sky. But how could a farm boy from Oklahoma find a plane? And how would he learn to fly it? None of the other pilots looked like him.

In a journey that would span 3,300 miles, take twenty-one days, and inspire a nation, James Herman Banning proved that you can’t put barriers on dreams. Louisa Jaggar incorporates over seven years of research, including Banning’s own writings and an interview with the aviator’s great-nephew. She teams up with cowriter Share Becker and award-winning illustrator Floyd Cooper to capture Banning’s historic flight across the United States.