The book One Fine Day: A Radio Play by Elizabeth Van Steenwyk tells the story of the day when the Wright Brothers successfully flew in one of their flying machines. The brothers, Orville and Wilbur, are confident that the flying machine that they had created was going to work that day. The story is told as an old time radio play, and gives cues for the reader, or performer, to do sound effects and tones.
The story starts out with Orville and Wilbur in North Carolina in 1903 talking about how excited they are to test their newest flying creation. Although their previous machine had only been in the air for a few seconds before crashing, they did not let that discourage them. The brothers were not even worried about the fact that the morning wind was very harsh, and they were right, the wind did calm down for them. The author did a great job of creating dialogue that is very realistic to how they would have talked and discussed with one another on that day.
When they actually test the “Flyer,” it ends up flying 120 feet. This story really taught me how far we have come in the world, and makes me appreciate all of the inventions we are so lucky to have. Without airplanes, we would not be able to travel so frequently or so quickly. This story really captures how this day of the first plane successfully flying actually went. To really experience this amazing and historic story, you must read it yourself!

A wonderful play about what happened on the day the Wright brothers made their first successful flight. A great book for reader's theater in the classroom! ( )

This is a beautifully illustrated book documenting the first flight of the Wright brothers. I liked the opening page which gives students ideas how to create specific sounds used in the play. The play can easily be performed in a classroom setting. It is a good way to have students connect to history. The playful banter between the brothers shows how close they were and also documents that historic day in 1903. I wish the author had added helpful websites or listed additional sources for students/teachers. ( )

Genre: Non-fiction
This is a good example of non-fiction because even though this is written in play form it is still a true story that is in all our history books. What these to men conquered was huge and it truly shaped our world now because without their discovery who knows if we'd have airplanes today that take us across the entirety of the world.
Characterization: Wilbur and Orville are the protagonist (main characters) because they are the only ones that are necessary to tell their own story. They did not have some bad guy chasing them throughout the book so there is no antagonist.
Art Media: Water Colors