2 May 1892: Manfred, Freiherr (Baron) von Richthofen (the "Red Baron") born in Breslau, Germany (present day Wroclaw, Poland)
The Red Baron: The Graphic History of Richthofen's Flying Circus and the Air War in WWI
by Wayne Vansant
(Zenith Graphic Histories)
Nonfiction/Graphic
Recommended for: Dialectic students-adults
104 pages
Zenith Press (2014)
This graphic version is a great way to introduce a Dialectic student to the legendary German World War I flying Ace but is also highly recommended by adults as worthwhile reading. If you have a Rhetoric student that does not want to spend a lot of time on the subject but wants to get to know the basics of either Baron von Richthofen's life, the early days of air combat, or both, this is a great choice. It is not a "comic" by any means but a carefully researched nonfiction piece nestled in great artwork.
The Red Baron
by Manfred von Richthofen
Nonfiction/Memoir
Recommended for: Rhetoric students/adults
216 pages
Independently published (2019)
Learn about the legendary flying ace as only he can tell the tale, through his autobiographical war memoir, written in July of 1917, while convalescing from an aerial combat injury. This newly reissued version also contains many photos, original combat reports of the baron's, interviews with those who flew against him, and back matter about his death. In the all-new world of aerial combat, none was more admired and feared than the Red Baron.
Fighting the Flying Circus
by Eddie Rickenbacker
Perfect companion read to The Red Baron
Nonfiction/Memoir
Recommended for: Rhetoric students/adults
239 pages
Independently published (2019)
Eddie Rickenbacker, an American aviator during World War I, flew against Baron Manfred von Richthofen and the rest of the "Flying Circus," as the German's aviation wing was called, from 29 April 1918 until the war's conclusion. Rickenbacker would go on to become the United State's most successful combat pilot. His memoir about his experience is the perfect compliment to von Richthofen's own memoir. Reading the two together will give your student (or you) a rare view of two sides of the story, both from first person perspectives written with all the immediacy of tales told while still fresh (Rickenbacker's memoir was published in 1919).