-
Wood, Wire, Wings
- Emma Lilian Todd Invents an Airplane
- Narrated by: Libby McKnight
- Length: 20 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Prime members: New to Audible?Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Wood, Wire, Wings
Buy for $2.44
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Publisher's summary
This riveting nonfiction book biography explores both the failures and successes of self-taught engineer Emma Lilian Todd as she tackles one of the greatest challenges of the early 1900s: designing an airplane.
Emma Lilian Todd's mind was always soaring—she loved to solve problems. Lilian tinkered and fiddled with all sorts of objects, turning dreams into useful inventions. As a child, she took apart and reassembled clocks to figure out how they worked. As an adult, typing up patents at the U.S. Patent Office, Lilian built the inventions in her mind, including many designs for flying machines. However, they all seemed too impractical. Lilian knew she could design one that worked. She took inspiration from both nature and her many failures, driving herself to perfect the design that would eventually successfully fly.
More from the same
Related to this topic
-
The Secret Garden
- By: Frances Hodgson Burnett
- Narrated by: Carrie Hope Fletcher
- Length: 7 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 7,488
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 6,747
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 6,711
Mary Lennox starts her life as an unhappy victim of circumstance. After the loss of her parents, she moves to rural Yorkshire to live with a distant uncle where she resents the wildness of the countryside. At first, she struggles to find a place in this new existence. Although unsure about her surroundings and its occupants, through the gentle guidance of the maid she gradually becomes interested in the story of Mrs Craven, who apparently used to spend her time in a garden at the house, the key to which has vanished.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fabulous
- By Lady Lightning on 05-19-20
-
The Ickabog
- By: J.K. Rowling
- Narrated by: Stephen Fry
- Length: 7 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5,197
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 4,623
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 4,612
The kingdom of Cornucopia was once the happiest in the world. It had plenty of gold, a king with the finest moustache you could possibly imagine, and butchers, bakers, and cheesemongers whose exquisite foods made a person dance with delight when they ate them. Everything was perfect - except for the misty Marshlands to the north, which, according to legend, were home to the monstrous Ickabog. Anyone sensible knew that the Ickabog was just a myth to scare children into behaving. But the funny thing about myths is that sometimes they take on a life of their own.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Oh, dear...
- By ili pika on 11-11-20
By: J.K. Rowling
-
Jack And The Beanstalk & Other Stories
- By: BBC Audiobooks
- Narrated by: Lenny Henry, Sheridan Smith
- Length: 1 hr and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 440
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 336
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 334
"Jack and the Beanstalk", read by Lenny Henry
"Goldilocks and the Three Bears", read by Sheridan Smith
"Puss in Boots", read by Lenny Henry
"Snow White", read by Sheridan Smith. Here are four fantastic stories, full of magic and fun, that young children are sure to love!
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Jack and the beanstalk
- By Amazon Customer on 03-02-21
By: BBC Audiobooks
-
The Reluctant Dragon
- By: Kenneth Grahame
- Narrated by: Anton Lesser
- Length: 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,489
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,219
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,214
The Boy lives in a cottage with his mother and father, and the Dragon lives in a cave on the Downs. The Boy is his only friend. The Dragon is not at all the sort of Dragon one might expect to meet, however: he's polite and friendly.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
THE HAPPY BOHEMIAN DRAGON
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 07-20-17
By: Kenneth Grahame
-
The Little Mermaid
- By: Hans Christian Andersen, Dina Gregory
- Narrated by: Leigh-Anne Pinnock
- Length: 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 263
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 235
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 234
Deep beneath the ocean, there is a shimmering palace. Built of coral walls and windows of clearest amber, it is the kingdom of the merpeople. And one of these mermaids you might know well: she is the youngest, and is gifted with the most beautiful voice. Unhappy with her life as a mermaid, she dreams of living on dry land. One day, on her birthday, she ascends to the surface to find a magnificent three-masted ship drifting in calm waters. There, amongst the passengers, she meets the brown-eyed prince.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Best 43:57 mins of my life
- By Anonymous User on 03-24-23
By: Hans Christian Andersen, and others
-
Interview with the Robot
- By: Lee Bacon
- Narrated by: Kevin T. Collins, Ellen Archer, Josh Hurley, and others
- Length: 3 hrs and 42 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 20,030
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 17,921
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 17,868
Eve looks like an ordinary 12-year-old girl, but there’s nothing ordinary about her. She has no last name. No parents or guardian. She’s on the run from a dangerous and secretive organization that will stop at nothing to track her down. And most astonishing of all: she’s a robot, a product of Eden Laboratories. When Eve discovers the truth, she realizes everything she thought she knew about herself is a lie. Eve manages to escape, fleeing the lab, the only home she’s ever known.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Good Short Listen
- By Ronnie on 01-07-20
By: Lee Bacon
-
The Secret Garden
- By: Frances Hodgson Burnett
- Narrated by: Carrie Hope Fletcher
- Length: 7 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 7,488
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 6,747
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 6,711
Mary Lennox starts her life as an unhappy victim of circumstance. After the loss of her parents, she moves to rural Yorkshire to live with a distant uncle where she resents the wildness of the countryside. At first, she struggles to find a place in this new existence. Although unsure about her surroundings and its occupants, through the gentle guidance of the maid she gradually becomes interested in the story of Mrs Craven, who apparently used to spend her time in a garden at the house, the key to which has vanished.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fabulous
- By Lady Lightning on 05-19-20
-
The Ickabog
- By: J.K. Rowling
- Narrated by: Stephen Fry
- Length: 7 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5,197
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 4,623
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 4,612
The kingdom of Cornucopia was once the happiest in the world. It had plenty of gold, a king with the finest moustache you could possibly imagine, and butchers, bakers, and cheesemongers whose exquisite foods made a person dance with delight when they ate them. Everything was perfect - except for the misty Marshlands to the north, which, according to legend, were home to the monstrous Ickabog. Anyone sensible knew that the Ickabog was just a myth to scare children into behaving. But the funny thing about myths is that sometimes they take on a life of their own.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Oh, dear...
- By ili pika on 11-11-20
By: J.K. Rowling
-
Jack And The Beanstalk & Other Stories
- By: BBC Audiobooks
- Narrated by: Lenny Henry, Sheridan Smith
- Length: 1 hr and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 440
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 336
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 334
"Jack and the Beanstalk", read by Lenny Henry
"Goldilocks and the Three Bears", read by Sheridan Smith
"Puss in Boots", read by Lenny Henry
"Snow White", read by Sheridan Smith. Here are four fantastic stories, full of magic and fun, that young children are sure to love!
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Jack and the beanstalk
- By Amazon Customer on 03-02-21
By: BBC Audiobooks
-
The Reluctant Dragon
- By: Kenneth Grahame
- Narrated by: Anton Lesser
- Length: 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,489
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,219
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,214
The Boy lives in a cottage with his mother and father, and the Dragon lives in a cave on the Downs. The Boy is his only friend. The Dragon is not at all the sort of Dragon one might expect to meet, however: he's polite and friendly.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
THE HAPPY BOHEMIAN DRAGON
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 07-20-17
By: Kenneth Grahame
-
The Little Mermaid
- By: Hans Christian Andersen, Dina Gregory
- Narrated by: Leigh-Anne Pinnock
- Length: 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 263
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 235
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 234
Deep beneath the ocean, there is a shimmering palace. Built of coral walls and windows of clearest amber, it is the kingdom of the merpeople. And one of these mermaids you might know well: she is the youngest, and is gifted with the most beautiful voice. Unhappy with her life as a mermaid, she dreams of living on dry land. One day, on her birthday, she ascends to the surface to find a magnificent three-masted ship drifting in calm waters. There, amongst the passengers, she meets the brown-eyed prince.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Best 43:57 mins of my life
- By Anonymous User on 03-24-23
By: Hans Christian Andersen, and others
-
Interview with the Robot
- By: Lee Bacon
- Narrated by: Kevin T. Collins, Ellen Archer, Josh Hurley, and others
- Length: 3 hrs and 42 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 20,030
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 17,921
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 17,868
Eve looks like an ordinary 12-year-old girl, but there’s nothing ordinary about her. She has no last name. No parents or guardian. She’s on the run from a dangerous and secretive organization that will stop at nothing to track her down. And most astonishing of all: she’s a robot, a product of Eden Laboratories. When Eve discovers the truth, she realizes everything she thought she knew about herself is a lie. Eve manages to escape, fleeing the lab, the only home she’s ever known.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Good Short Listen
- By Ronnie on 01-07-20
By: Lee Bacon
Love Books? You'll Love Audible.
Transform your day
Replace endless scrolling with endless listening. Chores can be fun.
Listen everywhere
Download titles to listen offline, wherever you are in the world.
Carry your entire Library
Your stories go where you go. Audiobooks don’t weigh a thing.
Listen and learn
Discover stories that can change your mind, your well-being, and your life.
Reach your reading goals
You can’t turn pages while you drive—but you can press play.
Find your niche
WIth thousands of titles to explore, there’s something for everyone.