Being from North Carolina, I have visited Kill Devil Hills many times and am familiar with the story of the Wright Brothers. While I found this book to be well-researched; it did not deliver the page-turning experience I'd hoped for. While I did enjoy this book, I was looking forward to reading a novel that was primarily about the often unknown player in this race for flight, Katharine Wright, and it fell short in that aspect.
Thanks, NetGalley and the publisher, for providing me with the ARC ebook I read and reviewed. All opinions are my own.

On July 20, 1969 man landed on the moon. We never would have gotten there without Wilbur, Orville, and their sister Katharine Wright. Tracy Enerson Wood's novel Katharine, The Wright Sister chronicles the contributions of all three Wright siblings to the idea of flight. The novel switches narration between Wilbur, Orville and Katharine and includes details of their family life, including how they would bird watch to see just exactly how birds flew in the air. Katharine has been erased from their story and the efforts of Wilbur in Orville right are largely forgotten in modern history. Katharine Wright attended college, became a teacher, fought for suffrage, and lived her life in the style the way we see modern women today. Katharine, The Wright Sister emphasizes the close bond between the siblings who had the "Wright" stuff for getting man in the air.

I love historical fiction, and specifically women lost in the history of men. I was looking forward to this book, but it was very technically heavy on the airplane building, and not focusing so much on the life of Katherine as much as I hoped for.

Katharine, the Wright Sister, tells the remarkable story of the woman behind the scenes, Katharine Wright, sister to the famous Wright brothers. As a family, the Wrights had clearly defined roles to help Wilbur and Orville achieve their dream of flight. But what about Katharine's own aspirations?

Close to both her brothers, Katharine took on the role of caregiver after their mother’s death, often acting as a housekeeper and support system for the boys. Despite her education and significant contributions—such as assisting in the construction of the glider—she was often overshadowed by her brothers. Yet, Katharine was equally responsible for creating the aviation sensation that took the world by storm. However, the fame that followed brought unforeseen challenges for the entire family.

The novel alternates between the voices of Wilbur, Orville, and Katharine, providing a well-rounded perspective on their lives. While I loved learning about this extraordinary woman, the book's slow pacing at times lessened its impact. Additionally, including pictures—such as historical family photos or diagrams of the gliders—would have enhanced the reader's understanding of the technical aspects involved. Overall, this book is not just Katharine’s story but a tribute to the entire Wright family.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark for providing both a physical and digital copy of this book.

This book is a historical fiction lover's delight! The author takes the well-known story of the Wright brothers that we were all taught in grade school and expands on it to include their sister, Katharine, who played a pivotal role in their lives. This is the third book that I have read by this author, and I can honestly say that I enjoyed all three of them. Her characters come to life on the page, and she makes history fascinating.

I was keenly interested in this story because I recently listened to David McCullough's audiobook "The Wright Brothers". The chapters in this book by Wood are told from the point of view of either Wilbur, Orville, or Katharine. There was a lot less about Katharine than you might expect from a book titled Katharine, but nonetheless it was still very well done.

I enjoyed this book, and it may have been a 5-star read for me if I hadn't already learned a lot about Wilbur and Orville from the nonfiction book by McCullough. Overall, this was a unique and captivating story that should appeal to a wide range of readers, especially fans of historical fiction.

My sincere thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Sourcebooks Landmark for giving me the opportunity to read a DRC of this novel in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

This book is a breath of fresh air! I love a strong female character! I also love her fierce support. Overall very good and well written.

It is so rare that I actutally cannot force myself to finish a book, but I am truly bored out of my mind with Wood's Katharine. Given that I'm not even halfway through after reading several hundred pages and NOTHING has happened AND I find myself literally dreading picking the book up to read, I'm just going to have to give up. I was excited to read this book as a vacationer of the Outer Banks for most of my childhood and into adulthood, so I grew up knowing about the Wright brothers and the first flight. Yet despite switching between all three characters (Katharine, Orville and Wilbur), I still couldn't tell you which brother was which, and all three characters were truly lackluster. Overall a huge disappointment.

Thank you to Net Galley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the chance to read and review this book. All opinions expressed below are my own.
This book discusses a little known historical figure and the world of aviation. I enjoyed learning about Katharine; unfortunately, she felt like a side character in her own story. While much of Katharine’s story is wrapped up in her brothers, the novel glosses over many aspects of her life to get to the next POV. We meet the man she turns down an engagement to with little context and no backstory. We’re told she loves her college town and makes lots of friends (though more elegantly of course) but never see any.
Part of this is due to the style of the novel. It switches POV between the characters every (fairly short) chapter.
I personally as a reader prefer more background and less POV switching. Despite this, it was clear the care and research that the author put into the novel and that was what compelled me to keep reading.
I think if you are the type of reader who prefers skipping straight to the “action” this novel may be more for you.

The Wright siblings- Katharine, Wilbur, and Orville- tell this tale of these pioneers of aviation. And Katharine, who sacrificed so much. deserves that title as well. This is fine historical fiction that tell the "rest of the story," Would the Wrights have succeeded how and when they did without their sister? Katharine raised them after their mother died, she handled all the back office and admin work, she pushed her own needs aside. Orville, by the way, does come off as a bit of a bully in this situation. I liked that Wood included clear and informative information about the planes and flight. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read.

DNF at 17%. I like the premise, but I was soon bored by the book itself. I knew very little about the Wright Brothers beyond the basic stuff, much less that they had a sister, and I loved the idea of a book that centered her. Unfortunately, she feels like a side character, sharing page time with her brothers, and the book just isn’t engaging. The book also skips around in time a lot, failing to keep my interest.

Thank you to Net Galley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the chance to read and review this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
I enjoyed this book, but I would have liked more about Katharine. I know her whole life was wrapped up in her brothers and their success, but I would have liked more from her POV. I enjoyed reading about Wilber and Orville. It was interesting learning about how hard they worked and their contributions to early flight. It was very well written, and I could tell the author did a lot of research. I am very interested in learning about aviation pioneers, so this book was right up my alley. I think you will like this book if you are interested in early aviation and learning more about the Wright family.

Katherine, sister of Wilbur and Orville Wright, sacrifices a personal life to share and support their dream of a flying machine. She turns down the chance for marriage and. children and eventually gives up her teaching career because of the publicity that follows the family. Tracey Enerson Wood uses documented history to imagine the thoughts of Katherine and her two siblings, demonstrating how they imagined, designed, built and practiced over and over to bring to fruition their first and ensuing flights. They come from a simple, honest, hard-working and supportive family, somewhat naive at times. The author’s research is evident throughout. Although I was at times confused with the technological references, their private lives and their close relationship held my interest to the final page.

I have been intrigued by the Wright Brothers for years. I've visited the museum on Kitty Hawk, NC, seen the original flyer in the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC and seen other replicas in other museums. But what I didn't know, was the drama behind the scenes! Katharine was the sister to Orville and Wilbur and she was a powerful force that helped organize and run the household, schedules, correspondence, bike shop and more. The brothers may have been the geniuses behind getting a plane to fly, but without Katharine's support, I don't think history would have been the same. Another interesting thing I did not know was the use of the Wright technology by Glenn Curtiss and Samuel Langley without the brothers consent. There were lawsuits about the Wright patent that went on for years. Langley was associated with the Smithsonian so it took many years to resolve the animosity the Wright Brothers felt toward the institution. Eventually, things were resolved so the flyer could be put on display in the museum. You get to peak into Katharine's life and how devoted she was to her father and brothers. She sacrificed the majority of her life choices so they could pursue their dream of creating a flying machine. Katharine does get to have a little bit of time with some friends and an eventual husband, but not enough.
The story is told from all three perspectives: Orville, Wilbur, and Katherine. I found this style of storytelling added layers to each character because you read how each was reacting to people, events, discussions, etc. It was a linear story and the three storylines were easy to follow.
I was fascinated by this story! How Katharine could be so selfless in her unwavering support for her brothers was phenomenal. If you want to read about a strong woman, flight or the early part of the 1900s, I highly recommend this book!
#KatharinetheWrightSister #NetGalley
Thank you Net Galley for a complimentary copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

Told from the perspectives of three of the Wright siblings, Orville, Wilbur, and Katharine, this novel is about the journey they took into history. It is important to note that it truly is the story of the three, rather than Katharine’s story, particularly in the first half of the novel. Katharine’s role takes on further weight and has a larger impact as the novel progresses, and becoming more her own story towards the end. It is clear throughout the novel that she is the force who keeps everyone motivated and on track. As well, each perspective allows the reader to see how much she is appreciated, respected, and sometimes under-appreciated by her brothers. A kind-hearted, selfless, intelligent, and educated Latin instructor, Katharine not only manages the bicycle business, but also assists, motivates, and focuses her brothers all while managing the household for herself, her brothers, and father. She offers ideas, support (moral & financial), finds the perfect material for the gliders, shakes the hands of presidents and royalty, and becomes the company’s social manager (and later Chief Executive) as Orville and Wilbur gain fame and notoriety first in Europe and later, in the United States.

The novel begins with a slower pace even as they the work against the clock to beat their competition in the race for flight. I think it felt slower as a result of the technical details about the specifics of flight, though Wood skillfully explains each concept. I found I wanted to see sketches of some of the brother’s inventions and improvements to help me visualize their ideas and complex concepts. The second half of the story was a much quicker pace that left me wanting to dive back into the dangerous world of the first airplanes even as I became more invested in the lives of Katharine, Orville, Wilbur, the Bishop, Carrie, and their families.

An intriguing and interesting novel about the role in history of an ordinary woman who helped her who was left out of the history books. Readers of #historicalfiction #aviation #flight #familydynamics and #dreamers will enjoy #katharinethewrightsister Available Sept 3, 2024! Thanks @netgalley & @bookmarked for the #drc

I really wanted to love this book; the concept was quite intriguing. Everything about the story seemed well-researched and authentic. The narrative was just a bit too slow for me. Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for an advance e-reader copy of this book!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ebook arc of this title. I love historical fiction and have been interested in the Wright Brothers since childhood, but the writing style of this book simply couldn’t pull me in - especially the shifting POVs.

Brimming with meticulous research, this novel is a detailed look into the life of Katharine Wright and her influence on the work of her airplane-inventing brothers. It's also an intimate portrait of the entire Wright family and early 20th-century Dayton, Ohio.

Wilbur and Orville Wright enjoyed building things, like printing presses and bicycles, and they open a bike shop in Dayton, Ohio. The brothers are fascinated by flight, they study birds and wonder if a machine could be built for humans to be able to fly? Their younger sister Katharine stepped into her mother's role when she died of tuberculosis, she kept house for Wilbur and Orville and her father and studied to be a teacher.

The Wright brothers tested the latest models on the beaches of North Carolina, at Kitty Hawk and they picked the location because it was windy, had soft sand to land on and away from prying eyes. Meanwhile Katharine located the right material for the gliders and plane prototypes wings, dealt with correspondence and bike shop, and worked as a high school teacher.

On the 17th of December 1903, Wilbur and Orville made history with the first controlled, sustained flight of humankind. The Wright brothers became famous, they travelled the world demonstrating their new invention, looking for financial backers and wanting to build better planes and teach others to fly. Then they were hit by a law suit, a legal fight over what they lodged a patent for and this takes a big toll Wilbur. Katharine gave up her career as a teacher to help her brothers follow their dreams and when she wants to do the same, a childish and ungrateful Orville forces her to make a difficult choice.

I received a copy of Katharine, the Wright Sister by Tracey Enerson Wood from the publisher and in exchange for an unbiased review. The author is known for writing historical fiction based on real women and this time its Katharine Wrights turn.

At first I found Orville’s attitude towards his sister annoying, it stopped me from enjoying the narrative and then I thought about how Ms. Enerson Wood chooses to write about overlooked women and Katharine Wright was certainly one of these. Katharine made huge sacrifices for her brothers to pursue their passion and remember behind successful men are influential and supportive women.

Five stars from me, I highly recommend Katharine, the Wright Sister and Tracey Enerson Wood's previous book, The War Nurse.

Historians remember men who have made a mark in this world. It’s gratifying to learn about a woman who was left out until now – a woman who was the driving force behind the creation of a flying machine.

Katharine Wright and her two brothers, Wilbur and Orville, put their heads together with mathematics, science and instincts and worked diligently for years until the early 1900s when the first airplane was off the ground. With short chapters, the book takes the readers through the process of how they studied the movements of birds and developed prototypes until they were able to get the wings off the ground. It was slow going with each step and at times, the pages were following the slow pace. However, I enjoyed learning about the mechanics of flying along with a mysterious romance on the side.

Naturally, a woman wrote this book. She finds fascinating parts of our history and with stacks of books, newspapers and reports, she brings readers an invigorating look of how inventions have created change and progress in our country. This time Tracey Emerson Wood presented a solid look at the stages of making an aircraft. It encourages one want to travel to Dayton, Ohio to visit the Wright Brothers National Museum – a place where it all began. Well, there is a problem. It should be the “Wright Brothers and Sister” National Museum.

My thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book with an expected release date of September 10, 2024.

I have loved all of Wood’s novels about strong women from our past. I knew a lot about Orville and Wilbur Wright, but did not know about Katharine. She gave her entire life to her brothers and was often the brain with ideas. The counted on her for so much.

The brothers owned a bicycle shop in Dayton, Ohio. While the world was wanting a flying machine, Orville and Wilbur decided to try taking on this challenge. They tested different models, while Katharine worked behind the scenes. They were at the forefront as the demonstrated their machine, trained others and kept improving their inventions.

When a tragedy pulled them, apart Katharine has to make a hard decision. The writing, research and story are well-done and had me invested in this wonderful lady.