Flygirl by Sherri L. Smith  flygirlIda Mae Jones is a young
African-American woman living with her family in Louisiana.  Her
father who taught her to fly a small crop duster has passed
away, and her brother has signed up to serve in World War II. 
It is not surprising that Ida Mae feels caught between her
family obligations and her love of flying.  She learns about the
Women Airforce Service Pilots -- a civilian organization that
served to fly airplanes under the military with the goal of
freeing up qualified men to serve in combat.  The WASP pilots
transferred planes and equipment from assembly plants to
military bases and often trailed targets in the air for anti-
aircraft artillery practice.   Not only was the WASP a highly
selective group that underwent rigorous training, but Ida Mae
faces even more difficulty because she knows she can't sign up
as a black woman.  Her fair skin allows her to pass for white,
but the stress of this combined with the training proves
difficult.  On the positive side, the frien