The Woman at the Wheel
Bertha Benz made the first long-distance drive of an early automobile in 1888 in Germany. This novel tells the story of her life from early childhood to this historic moment. Along the way, readers learn how Bertha overcame social expectations on her own terms when she met and then married Carl Benz. Carl was the inventor of the early “horseless carriage,” or “motorwagen,” as the Benzes called it. Bertha was as devoted as Carl to this dream, but she brought more business sense, practicality about working with others, and financial seed money in the form of her dowry to their partnership. She deserves to be remembered as more than solely his supportive wife.
Resilience in the face of derision shapes this story. Bertha countered the view of some that a horseless carriage was unnatural and an instrument of the devil with her own knowledge of how it worked mechanically and why its use could change people’s lives for the better. She was able to take her belief in the benefits of innovation out to the public in a way that her husband could not. In doing so, she still serves us today as a role model for what women are capable of. This engaging and witty reimagining of Bertha’s life both entertains and informs. Just like its vaunted motorwagen, it chugs along at an impressive pace and takes the reader on an inspiring and memorable ride.
