Wood, Wire, Wings: Emma Lilian Todd Invents an Airplane

Written by Kirsten W. Larson

Narrated by Libby McKnight

Problems always set Emma “Lilian” Todd’s mind soaring—even as a girl. Growing up during the golden age of invention and from a family of innovators, Lilian couldn’t hold strips of wire or bits of tin without tinkering. She turned toys and trash into useful inventions.

But when Lilian grew up and learned that inventing wasn’t considered women’s work, she decided on the next best thing. She got a job at the U.S. Patent Office typing up plans for brand-new inventions—and constructing each contraption in her mind. Soon, she engineered her own fantastic flying machines, testing and
tweaking her designs and overcoming each obstacle. Lilian found inspiration in nature and her many failures until her biggest dream finally took flight.

Science writer Kirsten W. Larson creatively captures in vivid detail the inventive, courageous, and independent Emma Lilian Todd, a true aviation pioneer.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Apr 11, 2023
• ISBN: 9798889560838

Reviews for Wood, Wire, Wings

[nbmars · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Emma Lilian Todd was born on June 10, 1865 in Washington, D.C. She was a self-taught inventor who, as the author writes, “grew up in a time when it seemed like everyone was tinkering…”. The author highlights some of the products of that “tinkering,” including the telephone, mass-produced watches, the typewriter, the incandescent light bulb, the sewing machine, and more. Lillian’s own grandfather even invented something: his own carriage wheel.Lillian caught the tinkering bug early, inventing her own weather vane she made out of a broken to. She later wrote:“I was always making things, and my mother saw to it that I wasn’t discouraged, that I had the tools I wanted.”When she grew up, she got a job typing up plans for new machines at the U.S. Patent Office. When she saw lans for a fantastical flying machine, she had to know if they would work. She spent hours working on a design of her own. Finally, in 1909, her own machine was completed, and, as she said, “quite equal to a man-made flyer, and far more practicable in some respects than many he has made.” In 1910, she was finally successful at getting her plane to fly.The book ends with an author’s Note providing more details about Lillian’s airplane along with actual photos, a timeline of airships, and a selected bibliography.Illustrations by Tracy Subisak reveal her background as an industrial designer.Although the book focuses on Lilian’s airplane designs, Lilian accomplished much more. She studied law, becoming a member of the first Woman's Law Class of New York University. Realizing the importance of aviation, Todd started the first Junior Aero Club in 1908 to foster the education of future aviators. The club met at Todd's home in New York, where her living room had become her workshop and was decorated by aircraft models of her own design and other mechanical toys. Todd was also credited with inventing and patenting a cabinet with a folding table, a cannon that could be triggered by solar power, a sundial, a typewriter copy-holder and an aeolian harp device that could be attached to a tree.Todd died on September 26, 1937.Evaluation: One of the most important lessons of this book is how often Todd failed in her efforts, but with persistence and study, she eventually realized her dreams.