The Wright Brothers

McCullough begins with the Wright family in Dayton: a household full of books, with a father who encouraged curiosity, and a close bond between Wilbur, Orville and their sister, Katharine, a teacher who managed much of their home life and later their public life. The brothers ran a printing business and then a bicycle shop, and their growing fascination with birds and gliders led them to write to the Smithsonian for information on flight.

From 1900 they traveled each year to the remote sand dunes near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, chosen for its steady winds, where they tested gliders, built their own wind tunnel and designed a light engine and propellers. On December 17, 1903, at Kill Devil Hills, Orville made the first powered, controlled flight, lasting about twelve seconds. The book then follows the years of skepticism that followed, their quiet flights at Huffman Prairie near Dayton, Wilbur's triumphant demonstrations in France in 1908, and Orville's terrible crash during army trials in Virginia the same year. Through letters and diaries, McCullough shows their humility, humor and determination.

Clear, lively and full of character. About 336 pages in the Simon & Schuster paperback, with photographs.