Every volume of Science Comics is terrific! The Flying Marchines volume is just as informative as the other Science Comics. Extremely educational as well as interesting and fun -- it is perfect! I can't wait to read more of them!

A great refresher on the mechanics of flight in comic book form. If you have any interest in the history of flight, engineering, or physics, then you will love this. Also, I had no idea the Wrights had a sister. Why didn't I know that? Now I need to learn more about her.

Also, if you think flying now is terrifying, imagine flying in one of the Wright's early gliders. No seat belts. No doors. Nothing to protect you from being smooshed...

Brought to you by OBS Reviewer Scott

The latest installment of Science Comics – Flying Machines: How the Wright Brothers Soared takes the series to new heights (literarily and figuratively). This volume of the graphic novel series explores the historical nature of this remarkable subject. Told from the perspective of Katherine Wright, the youngest and the only Wright who graduated from university, she teaches the fundamental principles of early aviation attempts and successes. Like most books in the Science Comics line, this graphic novel is geared toward younger readers. As a primer on the principles of flight, it shines brightly, giving a young child the principles, ideas, glossary and further readings in the field of aerodynamics and the bare basics of turbine jet propulsion.

The story is well told at a fairly brisk pace. A lot of history had to be crammed into a limited number of pages. Wilcus however makes it work, giving the basic information and ‘links’ to the more technical aspects. It shows solid character development of the Wrights and the French and German contemporaries. The dialogue is kept alive as the movement to different scenes and is witty and charming (and often verbose) and propels the ‘science’ behind heavier than air flight. The graphic novel is limited though to the first flying machines, circa early 1900’s to 1911 or thereabouts. It takes a brief look at the first jet propelled airplane, but the focus is on the early attempts in a boom industry.

The artwork is cartoony in a good way. Characters are drawn distinctly and simply, with just enough detail to provide individuality. The art could even be described as ‘airy.’ fitting for the subject materials. Shape is well defined and when details become important, Brooks delivers – making the seemingly difficult concepts easy to understand. Panelation is appropriate and sometimes dissolves into montage or ‘ghost conversations’ (talking heads importing information laid out in diagrammatical fashion). Overall the art is above par, colored well and executed cleanly. Simple to detailed the art reflects what it has to in the story.

Together, art and story in Flying Machines: How the Wright Brothers Soared, combine to create quite the educational experience. The graphic novel guides the young reader through the early attempts and the principles that led to modern flight. Complete with a clear illustrations of content, a glossary, further reading (both on the Wright brothers and the Wright sister) this novel is sure to appeal to the budding aeronautical engineer or jet propulsion scientists – or people just interested in the early days of flight. Science Comics: Flying Machines: How the Wright Brothers Soared is a entertaining and gratifying read.

Join Katherine Wright, younger sister of the famous aviators, on a journey through the development of heavier than air flying vehicles. Katherine takes readers back in time and shows them the big names in aviation from more than a century ago. Penaud, Lilienthal, Ader, Voisin, Bleriot, Santos-Dumont, Curtis, Bell, Selfridge, and Whittle are all included, but she focuses on her brothers. The illustrations show the various gliders and planes that the inventors tried - with details about their sizes and the materials used to construct each one. The narration follows the chronological order of events, so it is easy to see how each attempt led to new ideas and improvements. Terms like axis of control and ailerons are shown and explained.

This series follows in the tradition of the Magic School Bus and the Max Axiom books by sharing science concepts through a graphic format. In this case, the comic style illustrations bring the history of aviation to life for readers. There are plenty of facts, and also helpful features such as a glossary, a list of books for further reading, a brief biography of Katherine Wright, and shorter (paragraph-length) bios of aviation pioneers. This book is an excellent introduction to the history of airplanes and aviation, and offers enough names to give readers a good place to start researching the topic more deeply on their own.

First Second’s Science Comics line combines the best of everything: fascinating stories, entertaining education, and talented creators who know how to make good comics. Flying Machines: How the Wright Brothers Soared is no exception.

Alison Wilgus wrote and Molly Brooks illustrated this brief history of powered flight by heavier-than-air constructions. I was charmed from the beginning, with the choice to have the story narrated by Katharine Wright, sister of the famous airplane inventors the Wright Brothers. Typical of American history instruction, I previously had no idea she existed, let alone that she was so smart, hard-working, and supportive.

There’s some really nice comic technique in her appearances, too, as she’s drawn in the gutters between panels in a faded grey, reminding us she’s our guide, not part of the scenes we’re reading. The overall color scheme is shades of dark greyish blue and a warm brown. It’s surprisingly effective in suggesting a richer palette and gives a feeling of the past, but not a remote one.

Brooks does a terrific job keeping all the inventions believable and the characters in motion. The book covers more than just Orville and Wilbur Wright, with mentions of those who experimented with gliders and French aviators and information on the physics of flight, with plenty of diagrams. The underlying message, beyond how they proceeded with careful determination, is that of the scientific method, with observation and experimentation and small but important advances.

Science Comics: Flying Machines, by Alison Wilgus/Illustrated by Molly Brooks, (May 2017, :01First Second), $12.99, ISBN: 9781626721395

Recommended for readers 8-12

This latest installment of Science Comics introduces readers to Katharine Wright, sister to Wilbur and Orville Wright. When their mother died, Katharine stepped in to take over running the family household, which included corresponding with Wilbur and Orville as they traveled, both in the process of getting their first flight airborne and later, as they traveled through America and Europe. Here, she serves as the reader's guide through the history of aviation. We learn about European aviation enthusiasts, and the race for funding and progress between the Wright Brothers - owners of a bicycle shop in Dayton, Ohio - and the titled European men working toward the same cause.

Readers gets detailed names and statistics on the Wright brothers' flyers, and a look at the frustrating mechanical failures and serious injuries, including one fatality, leading up to that first historic flight. Readers also meet historic aviators who came after the Wright Brothers, including Frank Whittle, inventor of the turbojet engine, and who came There's an incredible amount of detail in this volume- aviation enthusiasts will love it.

An appendix with short biographies on other aviation pioneers, a biography on Katharine Wright, a glossary of aviation terms, and a list of further reading round out this volume. Providing readers with a look into history and aviation technology, Science Comics: Flying Machines is a solid add to STEM collections and reinforces the fact that comic books DO belong in the classroom.