Tom D. Crouch

A complete biography of the Wright Brothers, with a fleshing out of their early years, the story of their indomitable father, the bishop, and of their mother, from whom they inherited their mechanical skills. The chronicle of two brothers who, together at every step, changed technology forever and expanded the world. 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 show more 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. show less

If you ever had a question about the history of flight, this book has the answer. Spanning the entire twentieth century and then some, Wings also crosses the globe, covering major advancements made by all nations without being too US-centric. Black and white pictures and quotes by early observers capture the awe inspiring first years of flight. When I finished, I had an excessive list of fun facts I wanted to share with you. I picked the one I did because I simply can't imagine being show more launched into the air in the flimsy, uncontrollable, open-cock pits of the first planes!

As you might imagine, this is a pretty hefty tome covering massive amounts of material - a fact that wasn't always handled well. The organization of the book drove me a little nutty, jumping from topic to topic with little continuity and much back-tracking in the chronological order of events. Some chapters included information grouped by date and others included information grouped by topic. A lot of these sections were simply packed with facts and figures, with very little of the narration promised by narrative non-fiction. I felt jipped. Occasionally we'd stay with a topic long enough for the subject to become engaging, but this book mostly made me want to go read other books to learn more about specific people and events.

Later in the book, characters and companies begin to make repeat appearances, which helps with the continuity problem. But at the end of the day, this was not the book I was looking for. I intentionally chose the book for its' broad perspectives on aviation (something it does quite well!) but it turned out that I'm not especially interested in the broader view. It's possible more narration and less fact-listing would have helped, but I think I'll be a little wary of choosing broad over-views in the future. I'd much rather read a book the tells a limited but engaging personal story.

Who should read this? cover to cover? only someone who is very interested in a broad history of aviation, not someone looking for engaging personal narratives

This review first published on Doing Dewey. show less

If you ever had a question about the history of flight, this book has the answer. Spanning the entire twentieth century and then some, Wings also crosses the globe, covering major advancements made by all nations without being too US-centric. Black and white pictures and quotes by early observers capture the awe inspiring first years of flight. When I finished, I had an excessive list of fun facts I wanted to share with you. I picked the one I did because I simply can’t imagine being show more launched into the air in the flimsy, uncontrollable, open-cock pits of the first planes!

As you might imagine, this is a pretty hefty tome covering massive amounts of material – a fact that wasn’t always handled well. The organization of the book drove me a little nutty, jumping from topic to topic with little continuity and much back-tracking in the chronological order of events. Some chapters included information grouped by date and others included information grouped by topic. A lot of these sections were simply packed with facts and figures, with very little of the narration promised by narrative non-fiction. I felt jipped. Occasionally we’d stay with a topic long enough for the subject to become engaging, but this book mostly made me want to go read other books to learn more about specific people and events.

Later in the book, characters and companies begin to make repeat appearances, which helps with the continuity problem. But at the end of the day, this was not the book I was looking for. I intentionally chose the book for its’ broad perspectives on aviation (something it does quite well!) but it turned out that I’m not especially interested in the broader view. It’s possible more narration and less fact-listing would have helped, but I think I’ll be a little wary of choosing broad over-views in the future. I’d much rather read a book the tells a limited but engaging personal story. show less

In this flawless biography of the Wright brothers, Tom Crouch (chairman of the department of aeronautics at the National Air & Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution) explains the background, personal and technical factors behind the first successful powered flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina on the 17th December 1903.

The original aircraft is in the Smithsonian and says on the label, "By original scientific research, the Wright brothers discovered the principles of human flight as show more inventors, builders, and fliers they further developed the aeroplane, taught man to fly, and opened the era of aviation." Crouch looks at each of these elements but goes further in showing their persistence, strong family ties and complete integrity. I had the feeling that if any of these pieces were missing it would never have happened. Altogether a great book.

As a very minor point, it would have been useful to have diagrams to help follow the more technical aspects of the design changes. show less