The Wright Brothers

David McCullough

May 2015 · Sold by Simon and Schuster

About this ebook

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).

Ratings and reviews

My expectation was that this book was going to be all about how the Wright Brothers figured out lift and finally made a plane that could fly. Cool... the end. I was amazed when they flew the plane and I was only 1/3 of the way through the book! I'm thinking what can he possibly have to talk about for the remaining 2/3 of the book? In reality, flying the plane was just the beginning of a lifelong lucrative career of managing their invention throughout the world. I'm generally not a big history fan, but for me this book took a rote historical event and made it a tangible, real life story about a couple of guys who created an invention and how they shepherded it to success.

Really enjoyed the story from start to finish. The was my first book by David McCullough and I was very impressed. He really did an outstanding job of using just the right amount of detail and keeping the story moving.

Very interesting account of the early years of flight. Not just about the Wright Brothers but of people and places, inventors and inventions within historical context. Very nice read.

About the author

David McCullough (1933–2022) twice received the Pulitzer Prize, for Truman and John Adams, and twice received the National Book Award, for The Path Between the Seas and Mornings on Horseback. His other acclaimed books include The Johnstown Flood, The Great Bridge, Brave Companions, 1776, The Greater Journey, The American Spirit, The Wright Brothers, and The Pioneers. He was the recipient of numerous honors and awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award. Visit DavidMcCullough.com.