Birdmen : The Wright Brothers, Glenn Curtiss, and the Battle to Control the Skies (Paperback)

from woodsathome

Great retelling of the early days of flight. A little long, but readable. The only thing is ...I kind of hate the Wright brothers now. I mean they really come off like pompous jerks. Over and over they are stunned to find governments around the world are reluctant to buy their plane sight unseen....

from JudiRobben

I really enjoyed Lawrence Goldstone's new book Birdmen. Sometimes non fiction books can be dry and difficult to read but this book kept my attention and I finished it fairly fast. "Birdmen" tells the story of early aviation including gliders balloons and the development of early airplane. I knew ...

from fredbacon

I got off to a rocky start with Lawrence Goldstone's new book, Birdmen. By the end of the introduction, he had already made a silly technical mistake by confusing the special and general theories of relativity. He then botched his discussions of some technical issues with Langley's attempts at fl...

from Gatorhater

A well written journal of the history of aeronautics, starting with the development of a successful glider which was the real key to flight. The Wright brothers, Wilbur and Orville were dabbling in the cycle business when they met Glenn Curtiss, who installed small gas motors onto cycles. They de...

from corglacier7

Intriguing and very readable account about early aviation, and the rivalries and personalities that defined it. As noted, a few minor flaws, but overall, a very enjoyable and informative read that'll make this information easily accessible to a wide audience.