Brooks Molly Grayson - Science Comics: Flying Machines: How the Wright Brothers Soared

For my family, who got me here

Alison

To Kix, Barbara, and Eric Brooks
Molly

Text copyright 2017 by Alison Wilgus

Illustrations copyright 2017 by Molly Brooks

Drawn on 96 lb Canson Recycled Bristol with a Pentel Pocket Brush Pen and Deleter G-Pen nibs dipped in Koh-i-Noor
Rapidograph Universal ink. Colored on a MacBook Pro and Cintiq 22HD with a Wacom Art Pen using Chisel Felt Nibs,
Adobe Photoshop CS6, and a combination of several custom PS brushes and Kyle T. Websters ULTIMATE MegaPack.

Published by First Second

First Second is an imprint of Roaring Brook Press,

a division of Holtzbrinck Publishing Holdings Limited Partnership

175 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10010

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2016945553

eISBN 978-1-250-16941-9

First edition 2017

Book design by John Green

Edited by Casey Gonzalez

Printed in China by Toppan Leefung Printing Ltd., Dongguan City, Guandong Province

Paperback: 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Hardcover: 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Y our guide in this delightful retelling of the story of flight is Katharine Wright, little sister of Wilbur and Orville Wright, inventors of the airplane. As you will learn, the Wright brothers had plenty of competition, and the story of their improbable success is a gripping tale of hairbreadth escapes, blind alleys, and brilliant breakthroughs.

Along the way, you will meet a little boy named Frank Whittle, who grew up during the early days of flight and dreamed of making airplanes go impossibly fast. Together, the Wrights and Whittle laid the foundation for the modern jet plane that takes us wherever we want to go in the world.

But let me tell you about Katharine. She was the youngest in the family and the only girl. When she was fourteen, her mother died, and little Katie took over managing the household. Her father, a church bishop, was on the road much of the time, and she also served as his secretary, managing his correspondence while he was away. A few years later, she was the only one of his five children to earn a college degree.

Katharine was teaching high school Latin when her bachelor brothers, Wilbur and Orville, plunged into a problem that had frustrated the worlds greatest, smartest, and richest inventorsbuilding a flying machine.

She observed this crazy quest with great interest and unflagging support. And when it came time for Wilbur and Orville to market their airplane, she was what we would now call their public relations director. Since the first sales were in Europe, she had to deal with the kings, queens, counts, countesses, and other aristocrats who flocked to the flight demonstrations, often angling for free rides. I guess kings and queens never grow up!

Back to the brothers. How did they do it? Their genius was that they broke the problem down into manageable parts. (This is good advice for anybody.) Other inventors had simply attached a motor and a crude propeller to a bird-like contraption and then started the engine. They invariably crashed. Had they gotten into the air, they would have had no idea what to do.

By contrast, Wilbur and Orville realized that control was the most crucial problem of all, and they set about solving it first. Thats why they went to Kitty Hawk on the North Carolina coast, where steady winds allowed them endless experience perfecting the controls of their gliders. When they could finally glide as expertly as the gulls (well, almost), they designed and built an efficient set of propellers and had their mechanic, Charlie Taylor, construct a lightweight gasoline engine. Then, on December 17, 1903, they made history: the worlds first powered, controlled, heavier-than-air flight.

You may think I have just told you the story of flight. But you havent heard anything yet. Fasten your seat belts, bring your seatbacks and tray tables to their upright positions, turn off all electronic devices, and keep reading, for you are about to have the ride of your life!

Richard Maurer,

Author of The Wright Sister