The #1 New York Times bestseller from David McCullough, two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize—the dramatic story-behind-the-story about the courageous brothers who taught the world how to fly—Wilbur and Orville Wright. On a winter day in 1903, in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, two brothers—bicycle mechanics from Dayton, Ohio—changed history. But it would take the world some time to believe that the age of flight had begun, with the first powered machine carrying a pilot. Orville and Wilbur Wright were men of exceptional courage and determination, and of far-ranging intellectual interests and ceaseless curiosity. When they worked together, no problem seemed to be insurmountable. Wilbur was unquestionably a genius. Orville had such mechanical ingenuity as few had ever seen. That they had no more than a public high school education and little money never stopped them in their mission to take to the air. Nothing did, not even the self-evident reality that every time they took off, they risked being killed. In this “enjoyable, fast-paced tale” (The Economist), master historian David McCullough “shows as never before how two Ohio boys from a remarkable family taught the world to fly” (The Washington Post) and “captures the marvel of what the Wrights accomplished” (The Wall Street Journal). He draws on the extensive Wright family papers to profile not only the brothers but their sister, Katharine, without whom things might well have gone differently for them. Essential reading, this is “a story of timeless importance, told with uncommon empathy and fluency…about what might be the most astonishing feat mankind has ever accomplished…The Wright Brothers soars” (The New York Times Book Review).

The reissue of this definitive biography heralds the one-hundredth anniversary of the Wright brothers' first flight. Brilliant, self-trained engineers, the Wright brothers had a unique blend of native talent, character, and family experience that perfectly suited them to the task of invention but left them ill-prepared to face a world of skeptics, rivals, and officials. Using a treasure trove of Wright family correspondence and diaries, Tom Crouch skillfully weaves the story of the airplane's invention into the drama of a unique and unforgettable family. He shows us exactly how and why these two obscure bachelors from Dayton, Ohio, were able to succeed where so many better-trained, better-financed rivals had failed.

Young Orville and Wilbur Wright loved building things. From the fastest sled in town to the highest-flying kite, the Wright brothers’ creations were always a step ahead of everyone else’s. They grew up learning all about mechanics from fixing bicycles and studied math and physics. On December 17, 1903, Orville took off in the world’s first flying machine! The Wright airplane is one of the most amazing–and life-changing–

Definitive, crisply written study tells the full story of the brothers' lives and work — from their early childhood and initial fascination with flight, the historic first flight at Kitty Hawk, more.

Presents a biography of the Wright brothers, focusing on their systematic research of flight mechanics which proved the key to their success.

The Wright Brothers by David McCullough | A 15-Minute Summary & Analysis Preview:In the outskirts of North Carolina, on a small hamlet barely inhabitable and just shy of the stone age, history would take a flying leap into the vast unknown. A daring gamble that would test the very limits of the possible and for once cement the notion that conquering impossibility was just one risk away. On 1903, on a remote spot of land, besieged by winds and winter weather, modern age of aviation was born. Kitty Hawk secured its spot in the annals of history when two adventurous brothers overcame gravity and proved that flight was no longer the sole domain of the birds. Their names were Wilbur and Orville, and they would forever be called "The Wright Brothers."David McCullough's latest book once more proves that the Pulitzer garnered writer is not only a force to be reckoned with, but quite possibly the absolute authority as far as historical fictions are concerned. His meticulous, almost painstaking study into the lives of the two pioneering auto-didactics that rewrote the laws of aerodynamics is nothing short of a thrilling romance set in an a particular age; the age of invention. A romance of men and creativity. A period in American history where the outflow of patents and breakthroughs flowed like honey onto a continuously gobsmacked nation. PLEASE NOTE: This is a Summary and Analysis of the book and NOT the original book. This companion includes the following: - Book Review- Character List- Summary of the Chapters- Discussion Questions- Analysis of Themes & Symbols This Analysis fills the gap, making you understand more while enhancing your reading experience.