“Birdmen” by Lawrence Goldstone – Conquest of the Skies

Ever since we were old enough to realize the sky existed, humanity has always had an urge to take to it, to experience unparalleled freedom. For decades, centuries, and even thousands of years we have tried to imitate the flight of birds, albeit with very limited success.

However, things took a drastically different turn when the industrial revolution came about. In the very early days of the 20th century, fueled by then-unimaginable technological advancements, a large number of people became friends, enemies, accomplices and rivals in their glorious conquest of the skies.

Birdmen by Lawrence Goldstone chronicles those early days in the history of aviation, placing a great focus on two sides: Glenn Curtiss on one hand, and the Wright brothers on the other. As many of you probably learned way back in school, the Wright brothers were the first ones to actually realize the idea of making something heavier than air fly. Glenn Curtiss, however, ended up taking a back seat in history books, perhaps getting footnote here and there.

However, in his time Curtiss' machines were innovative, dangerous, and trying frantically to tear away at new horizons... which makes some sense, considering the inspiration for them came from the mind of motorcycle racer.

The two parties battled each other in and out of the courts for countless years, and between them were countless other inventors, many of whom tried to wedge their own way into the history of aviation.

To begin with, from an educational perspective, in terms of recounting what happened in great detail between all the involved parties at the time, the book doesn't falter one bit. Everything is described with utmost accuracy, to the point where you can almost literally say you've lived in that time and took part in Man's early take to the skies.

The thrill of exploring that which for many years seemed completely beyond our grasp was is very well-captured, making the whole thing not a mere history lesson but a grandiose adventure, one where you take nothing for granted even if you already know how things are going to work out.

All in all, Birdmen is certainly a welcome and entertaining study, homage, and reminder of the early days of aviation, a time from which few details tend to resurface. I definitely recommend it if you are fascinated by the freedom of the skies, and/or want to learn about the early days of aviation in all their glory.

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Lawrence Goldstone Personal site Lawrence Goldstone is an American writer, one whose works have appeared in numerous prestigious publications, including the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times and the Miami Herald. At this point, roughly half his books were co-authored by his wife, and his first novel, Rights, netted him a New American Writing Award.