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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
The book: Gus Grissom: The Lost Astronaut
The author: Ray E. Boomhower, author and historian from Indiana
The subject: A biography of Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom, one of the original Mercury Seven astronauts and first astronaut to fly into space twice, whose life was tragically caught short by a fire during a pre-launch test of the Apollo 1 command module.
Why I chose it: I bought this from the (since closed) Science Museum's branch of Waterstones because astronauts are cool.
The rating: Four out of five stars
What I thought of it: Many people probably know of Gus Grissom as a result of Tom Wolfe's book "The Right Stuff" and the subsequent movie. Both of these came out after Grissom's death and were rather less respectful than they might have been of a man no longer around to defend himself. This book is far more appropriate and in-depth, covering Grissom's life from his childhood in Mitchell, Indiana, through his work as a test pilot, then an astronaut, through to his untimely demise and what happened after it.
Boomhower managed to get a good balance between talking about Grissom's home life and his work life, so you get a full and rounded portrait of the man he was. There is a lot of technical detail communicated well, as well as anecdotes to stop it from being too dry. You get a real sense of how dedicated Grissom was to the space program, which makes his chronic bad luck while part of it even more saddening.
I know a fair amount about NASA's early manned missions, but I learned some new stuff in this book. Perhaps not the most historically significant, but oddly most saddening to me, was that after Grissom's Liberty Bell 7 spacecraft almost sank as a result of the hatch blowing, his two young sons were bullied at school because it was reported that Grissom had panicked and opened the hatch prematurely. Kids, eh? (Incidentally, the evidence points towards Grissom having nothing to do with the hatch blowing; in fact, it seems like it may have been an issue with the hatch door not being adequately secured, which was rectified for later missions.)
If you're interested in the history of human spaceflight, NASA or anything in that ballpark, I definitely recommend this book. Even if you're not, it's an absorbing account of the life of a space pioneer that is both sympathetic and realistic. You will come out of it with a far more rounded portrait of Grissom than other books have provided.
Just one more thing: This picture. Just... this picture.
(Alan Shepard on the left, Gus Grissom on the right. I think these suits must have been NASA issue.)
The author: Ray E. Boomhower, author and historian from Indiana
The subject: A biography of Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom, one of the original Mercury Seven astronauts and first astronaut to fly into space twice, whose life was tragically caught short by a fire during a pre-launch test of the Apollo 1 command module.
Why I chose it: I bought this from the (since closed) Science Museum's branch of Waterstones because astronauts are cool.
The rating: Four out of five stars
What I thought of it: Many people probably know of Gus Grissom as a result of Tom Wolfe's book "The Right Stuff" and the subsequent movie. Both of these came out after Grissom's death and were rather less respectful than they might have been of a man no longer around to defend himself. This book is far more appropriate and in-depth, covering Grissom's life from his childhood in Mitchell, Indiana, through his work as a test pilot, then an astronaut, through to his untimely demise and what happened after it.
Boomhower managed to get a good balance between talking about Grissom's home life and his work life, so you get a full and rounded portrait of the man he was. There is a lot of technical detail communicated well, as well as anecdotes to stop it from being too dry. You get a real sense of how dedicated Grissom was to the space program, which makes his chronic bad luck while part of it even more saddening.
I know a fair amount about NASA's early manned missions, but I learned some new stuff in this book. Perhaps not the most historically significant, but oddly most saddening to me, was that after Grissom's Liberty Bell 7 spacecraft almost sank as a result of the hatch blowing, his two young sons were bullied at school because it was reported that Grissom had panicked and opened the hatch prematurely. Kids, eh? (Incidentally, the evidence points towards Grissom having nothing to do with the hatch blowing; in fact, it seems like it may have been an issue with the hatch door not being adequately secured, which was rectified for later missions.)
If you're interested in the history of human spaceflight, NASA or anything in that ballpark, I definitely recommend this book. Even if you're not, it's an absorbing account of the life of a space pioneer that is both sympathetic and realistic. You will come out of it with a far more rounded portrait of Grissom than other books have provided.
Just one more thing: This picture. Just... this picture.
(Alan Shepard on the left, Gus Grissom on the right. I think these suits must have been NASA issue.)
I've read a lot about NASA, mostly about the Apollo missions. This was a great overview of the Mercury and Gemini eras. Gus is a great example of someone who works hard for the greater good of others, a real servant leader.
The gist I got from Grissom's bio was that he was a quiet, no-nonsense, get-the-job-done, and do it well, no need to brag or showboat, keep away from that limelight, but still have a damn good time, astronaut. My kinda dude.
This book often took a defensive stance, essentially saying "Ok, you're probably reading this because of Tom Wolfe's The Right Stuff, and the follow up movie. Maybe NASA at first thought Gus prematurely blew the hatch on his Mercury spacecraft out of fear, but most don't think that any more, ok? Wolfe and Hollywood just liked stirring the pot. Who knows, maybe he did, but here are a hundred ways in which he was a badass who wouldn't dare do such a thing."
I thought it was a little distracting and wish the author had told Grissom's story as-is, and maybe reference The Right Stuff and the ensuing fallout near the end of the book, in the pages talking about the years after his tragic death.
It's a shame that we lost such a great, talented, brave man due to "launch fever" and poor workmanship. But the interesting point the authors makes is that had the accident not happened on the ground, but in space during its mission, the Apollo program would have likely been canceled right at the beginning as it would have been a complete mystery what went wrong. And then no big step for Neil, or anyone.
Once again my hero Henri Landwirth, founder of Give Kids the World, makes an appearance. That's always cool.
Per aspera ad astra.
This book often took a defensive stance, essentially saying "Ok, you're probably reading this because of Tom Wolfe's The Right Stuff, and the follow up movie. Maybe NASA at first thought Gus prematurely blew the hatch on his Mercury spacecraft out of fear, but most don't think that any more, ok? Wolfe and Hollywood just liked stirring the pot. Who knows, maybe he did, but here are a hundred ways in which he was a badass who wouldn't dare do such a thing."
I thought it was a little distracting and wish the author had told Grissom's story as-is, and maybe reference The Right Stuff and the ensuing fallout near the end of the book, in the pages talking about the years after his tragic death.
It's a shame that we lost such a great, talented, brave man due to "launch fever" and poor workmanship. But the interesting point the authors makes is that had the accident not happened on the ground, but in space during its mission, the Apollo program would have likely been canceled right at the beginning as it would have been a complete mystery what went wrong. And then no big step for Neil, or anyone.
Once again my hero Henri Landwirth, founder of Give Kids the World, makes an appearance. That's always cool.
Per aspera ad astra.