West with the Night

This 1942 memoir (not a complete autobiography) by Beryl Markham chronicles her experiences growing up in Kenya (then British East Africa) in the early 1900s, and her stellar careers as racehorse trainer and bush pilot.

Markham was the first woman in East Africa to be granted a commercial pilot's license, piloting passengers and supplies to remote corners of Africa. She became the first person to fly solo across the Atlantic from east to west.

Considered a classic of outdoor literature and ranked #8 by National Geographic Adventure in 2008 on its list of the 100 best adventure books.