Amelia Earhart is, without a doubt, the world's most famous woman aviator, but she was not the first. Before Amelia introduces the world's remarkable women pioneer aviators who braved the dangers and challenges of the first two decades of flight. The story begins with Ramonde de Laroche, a French woman, who became the first licensed female pilot in 1910. De Laroche, Russia's Lydia Zvereva, Germany's Melli Beese, Britain's Hilda Hewlett, America's Harriet Quimby, and the other women pilots profiled here rose above contemporary gender stereotypes and proved their ability to fly the temperamental heavier-than-air contraptions of the day.