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159 reviews for:
Spaceman: An Astronaut's Unlikely Journey to Unlock the Secrets of the Universe
Mike Massimino, Tanner Colby
4.5 AVERAGE
159 reviews for:
Spaceman: An Astronaut's Unlikely Journey to Unlock the Secrets of the Universe
Mike Massimino, Tanner Colby
4.5 AVERAGE
informative
inspiring
Book review 66 - Spaceman by Mike Massimino
As part of the #greatspaceread , I bought Spaceman by Mike Massimino after seeing him with his book on the program for the launch of the Crew Dragon spacecraft a while ago.
I absolutely loved this book and read it in 3 days. It had space shuttle missions to the Hubble Space Telescope including all of the training and preparation.
I recommend this for any lover of the space program and will definitely be making this book one of my rereads in the future.
As part of the #greatspaceread , I bought Spaceman by Mike Massimino after seeing him with his book on the program for the launch of the Crew Dragon spacecraft a while ago.
I absolutely loved this book and read it in 3 days. It had space shuttle missions to the Hubble Space Telescope including all of the training and preparation.
I recommend this for any lover of the space program and will definitely be making this book one of my rereads in the future.
I could hardly put this down all weekend. The writing style is like you're sitting down for a drink with Massimino while he describes his life, dreams, and adventures to you. Really struck a cord of awe in me to imagine looking down at the earth and out at space from the Hubble. Also loved his words on teamwork.
I enjoyed this so much. And I know I say that about every astronaut biography, but this is actually one that I think non-space fans would also enjoy so much. Mike Massimino is my first Hubble astronaut to read about. Usually, they’re either ISS or Apollo astronauts, and I didn’t know that Mike wasn’t a space station one going in, so it was really cool to realize about midway that I was going to be learning a lot of new stuff! I always learn new stuff, but I’ve read a few ISS astronauts, so I was ready for the usual setting, but nope, Hubble is an entirely different animal. This autobiography follows Massimino from the early days of running around his backyard in an astronaut costume with his space Snoopy to his last mission fixing the Hubble telescope.
I liked it for a lot of reasons, but perhaps most importantly, there was no toilet chapter! I cannot express enough how sick and tired I am of reading about how male astronauts need a condom to pee. I don’t care. I don’t want to hear about it, especially when it’s accompanied by the usual nonsense regarding sizes. You’re all stupid. Massimino, thankfully, gave us a chapter about food and sleep instead, and I really appreciated that. I also related to it a lot more. He’s a super funny guy, and the writing showed that really well. This is an enjoyable story, and it comes across that way. It’s not all numbers and hard-to-pronounce science terms. It’s goofy at times, it explains things in simple English, and it takes a solid moment to remind us how small and big we are at the same time. My favorite scene was definitely when Mike is outside for the first time and he realizes that the Earth is a planet, and that he’s in a spaceship. It was adorable, and I totally understood what he was getting at.
This is definitely going up there with my favorite astronaut biographies. It’s also the last one I currently own, which is just the saddest thing in the world, so fingers crossed I get a couple for Christmas.
I liked it for a lot of reasons, but perhaps most importantly, there was no toilet chapter! I cannot express enough how sick and tired I am of reading about how male astronauts need a condom to pee. I don’t care. I don’t want to hear about it, especially when it’s accompanied by the usual nonsense regarding sizes. You’re all stupid. Massimino, thankfully, gave us a chapter about food and sleep instead, and I really appreciated that. I also related to it a lot more. He’s a super funny guy, and the writing showed that really well. This is an enjoyable story, and it comes across that way. It’s not all numbers and hard-to-pronounce science terms. It’s goofy at times, it explains things in simple English, and it takes a solid moment to remind us how small and big we are at the same time. My favorite scene was definitely when Mike is outside for the first time and he realizes that the Earth is a planet, and that he’s in a spaceship. It was adorable, and I totally understood what he was getting at.
This is definitely going up there with my favorite astronaut biographies. It’s also the last one I currently own, which is just the saddest thing in the world, so fingers crossed I get a couple for Christmas.
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
Completely inspiring tale of teamwork and perseverance. Even as an MIT-grad, PhD, astronaut, Mike comes across as an every-man and someone you want to root for. He is a testament to the idea that hard work, determination, teamwork, and networking will take you farther than any personal skill you can foster.
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Reading about astronauts is one of my favourite things. It's the human exploration angle rather than the science. Massimo gets that and tells a cracking tale. Even better is that he flew to Hubble on Atlantis, which is my shuttle (in so far as it's the one we saw when we visited Cape Canaveral., anx who's replica model lives on my bookshelf)
I listened to the Audiobook on Audible. Massimino’s ability to tell a captivating story was evident from the very start of the book. I’ve seen interviews and watched him on The Big Bang Theory, so I knew I’d enjoy listening to him as the narrator of his own book. There were several moments I had tears. Several moments I was awestruck at what he described and how clearly I could imagine space from his description. A very inspiring individual who is also a great storyteller. If space has ever interested you or you enjoy stories of people accomplishing their goals, this is a great read.
This book was a pretty good way of explaining things about spaceflights, NASA, and how people got there, to people like me. I like to look at the stars, but I'm old school - caveman style. I just want to look up and see the pictures the night sky makes. I did briefly, in 3rd grade, want to be an astronaut just to see the stars and plants up close, but that was it. I never studied further than was required or what was in the newspaper.
The author is excited about his journey and while I can see why some might think he's giving a candy coated version of things, I don't get that impression. Or rather I don't get the impression he is putting that spin on it. I think he believes all the motivational stuff he's written. Most of the time, I feel like when someone does that, it's to sell more books/tickets to motivational talks. His story telling strikes me as being sincere. I'll take it.
I was particularly moved by his telling of the Columbia disaster. Gave me another perspective than I had before.
The author is excited about his journey and while I can see why some might think he's giving a candy coated version of things, I don't get that impression. Or rather I don't get the impression he is putting that spin on it. I think he believes all the motivational stuff he's written. Most of the time, I feel like when someone does that, it's to sell more books/tickets to motivational talks. His story telling strikes me as being sincere. I'll take it.
I was particularly moved by his telling of the Columbia disaster. Gave me another perspective than I had before.