The Wright Brothers is the real story of the first men to ever achieve real human flight, Orville and Wilbur Wright.
The brothers lived in Dayton, and like many people of that time, they were tradesmen who worked in a bicycle repair shop. McCullough explains that the boys were incredibly inventive and although they had no diplomas, they were intelligent with a wide array of fascinations. Perhaps this is because they were raised with a plethora of books, suggests McCullough. They didn't even have plumbing or electricity in that home, but they had quite a lot of books—their father was a preacher after all.
The boys realized early in life that their ways of thinking were compatible, and if they worked together, they could do whatever they wanted. Wilbur was a genius, quite literally, but it was Orville who was the remarkable mechanic. It seems their intelligences were equal, but different, with Orville's intelligence being a more physical intuition and Wilbur's being more abstract and theoretical. They decided to pursue human flight. They made it their mission. They became so dedicated that not even the very real possibility of death would stop them.
The many first-hand accounts include letters, diaries and even an account of the two brother's sister, Katharine, who also played a vital role in bringing the story of their success into the society. The work draws on the Wright family's letter archive of over one thousand letters.
