First Flight

Experience the greatest breakthroughs in science, with the DK Science Stories series.

Meet Orville and Wilbur Wright: two ordinary brothers with an extraordinary dream. In a world of horse-drawn carriages, the Wrights want to take to the skies. This is the true story of how their creativity, scientific thinking, and sheer determination turned their dream into reality and changed the world.

Growing up, the Wrights are captivated by the idea of flight – studying birds and toy helicopters to try to unlock their secrets. When a terrible accident sees Wilbur drop out of school, the brothers set up shop building bicycles. Using their mechanical know-how and inspired by aviation pioneers of the past, the self-taught brothers set out on a seemingly impossible task: to design, build, and fly the world’s first aeroplane.

Dr Anna Ploszajski is a materials scientist, storyteller, writer, presenter, skills trainer, and border collie dog mum, originally from Bedford, now settled in Walthamstow, East London. She has a PhD in materials science and specialises in scientific storytelling. She has won numerous prestigious industry awards for her work, including Young Engineer of the Year by the Royal Academy of Engineering, and the Silver Medal from the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3). In 2022 she was made a Fellow of the IOM3, one of the youngest in its history. This is her first book for children.

© 2026 Anna Ploszajski (P) 2026 DK Audio