Boyne, Walter J. Dawn over Kitty Hawk.BOYNE, Walter J. Dawn over Kitty Hawk Kitty Hawk or Kittyhawk, part of an offshore sandbar on Cape Hatteras, NE N.C., E of Albemarle Sound. Nearby is Kill Devil Hill, where the Wright brothers experimented successfully (1900–1903) with gliders and airplanes. , Tor, Forge. 418p. c2003. 0-765-34393-2. $7.99. JSA JSA - Japanese Standards Association. A novel that will appeal to an audience that includes fans of historical fiction, those interested in the history of flying, and others who just want a "deeply engrossing engrossing, in English law, practice of acquiring a monopoly of goods in order to sell them at an inflated price. The offense was ordinarily limited to monopolies of foods. Related practices were forestalling, i.e. good read." This well-written story puts flesh and blood on the early pioneers of aviation, including Glenn Curtiss, Otto Lillienthal, Samuel Langley, and of course, Orville and Wilbur Wright. From the beginning, the reader picks up tidbits TidBITS is an award-winning electronic newsletter and web site dealing primarily with Apple Computer and Macintosh-related topics. Internet publication TidBITS has been published weekly since April 16, 1990, which makes it one of the longest running Internet publications. of information that add interest to the story. For example, the Wright brothers were terrified ter·ri·fy tr.v. ter·ri·fied, ter·ri·fy·ing, ter·ri·fies 1. To fill with terror; make deeply afraid. See Synonyms at frighten. 2. To menace or threaten; intimidate. of their father; Samuel Langley was a competitor and a tyrant; and Glenn Curtiss was named for the town where he was born. Beyond that, even though everyone knows that the Wrights flew the first motor-powered airplane, readers will get caught up in the competition, smirking at others' failures and cheering the Wright brothers' success. The author begins with a look at Orville and Wilbur's background. Boyne emphasizes that Will and Orv were bicycle mechanics who knew little of scientific theories or laws. They were in competition to invent the first flying machine with noted scientist S.P. Langley, secretary of the Smithsonian Institute, engineer Octave Chanute Octave Chanute (18 February 1832 - November 23 1910) was a French-born American railroad engineer and aviation pioneer. He provided the Wright brothers with help and advice, and helped to publicise their flying experiments. , and other lesser-known but very capable competitors. Boyne describes the rugged life at Kitty Hawk so vividly that the reader will almost feel the wind and sand. Many may be surprised that, even after they had been successful, the brothers were not universally acclaimed. Some called them charlatans; others leveled unfair criticism; and competitors tried to illegally use their patents. Through it all, the Wrights persevered. Informative and enjoyable. Prof. John E. Boyd, Jenkintown, PA |
|
||||||||||||||||||

Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion