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tittypete's review against another edition
5.0
Tom Wolfe could write about lead-poisoning-induced constipation and it would still be utterly fascinating. But here he’s talking about the wild early days of the US space program so the fascinating score is double for Tom. The book starts with test pilots in the California desert who would fly dangerous experimental planes and then get shitfaced at the local bar and then drive home super fast. Flying and drinking and drinking and driving. A bunch of them die. But almost exclusively from the flying part. The bits about landing on an aircraft carrier at night are particularly pants-shitting. The job has something like a 70% survival rate and it’s not even wartime.
So this the group of folks from which the first seven astronauts were picked. Most of them seemed cool except for John Glenn who comes across like a pompous asshole. Guys who are cool pushing the limits of untested prototype aircraft are good candidates for the job of sitting atop a rocket and being launched into space. The fact that all previous unmanned rocket launch attempts had exploded on the pad notwithstanding. It was nuts. These dudes didn’t give a frick.
Anyway they shoot some monkeys up into space first (this is one of the best parts of the book) and then they shoot some dudes up there. Alan Shepard get to go first and has to piss all over himself because there’s no piss tube. But John Glenn sort of gets all the credit because he actually orbits. Gordo Cooper was best of all because he actually piloted his craft a little. Everybody's wife gets pretty stressed out.
This was a good one.
sinikl's review against another edition
4.0
I am a space junkie, but had never read this book. I loved the subject matter, the insight, getting a sense of the test pilot world and seeing the camaraderie that influenced the Mercury mission. Although I found this to be entertainingly well-written, there is one element that sticks in my craw: Tom Wolfe likes exclamation points! A lot! It might be a crutch! Or a stylistic choice! But it is annoying!
jeffmauch's review against another edition
5.0
This is an incredible read. Tom Wolfe writes in a style where you feel like you're on the edge of your seat from start to finish. It's truly amazing that we went from flying airplanes short of the sound barrier to putting men in orbit in a matter of 15 or so years. Throw in that we were treating the space race as a truly life or death competition with the Russians and you've got quite the story. Being much too young to have seen any of this live or really appreciate it, I found this book gave me a great view into this time period. Getting a glimpse into the lives of people like John Glenn, Chuck Yeager, Alan Sheppard, and the rest of these men at the height of their careers and seeing how they were looked at as rockstars/idols is unlike anything I've seen in my generation. I think we take space flight and astronauts for granted these days, we got to the moon and people lost interest, especially as the Russians became lesser of a threat. I realize that a lot of this was only possible because congress was essentially writing a blank check to NASA because of the cold war and nuclear threat of Russia. It's kinda sad that we don't value the science NASA does the same way we value having a gigantic and unnecessary military budget.
jelek86's review against another edition
2.0
The story is great, if Wolfe could get out of the way and let it be told. Did he get paid by the word, with an extra bonus for each time he used an ellipses? Skim this one, and you'll be fine.
bookworm_anna's review against another edition
4.0
During my obsession with space, i knew I had to watch the movie The Right Stuff, which lead me to the book it was based on. One of the reasons it is such a great book is that it is a non fiction book that reads like a novel. It gives amazing detail of the life and times of not only the Mercury astronauts but also of the test pilots at Edwards who were also trying to fly in space. I really liked how things that were addressed/explained in the beginning were brought back later to explain why the astronauts/pilots felt and acted the way they did. It only goes to show how all of history is related and interconnected, not individual, isolated events. I also really enjoyed how Wolfe explains the public reaction to events using the national identity of the time and their expectations and wants. I thought it was interesting how Wolfe, without ever saying outright, showed how he disagreed with the treatment of the chimpanzees used as test subjects. My only complaint is that from time to time, Wolfe does get a little wordy- the parts I enjoyed the most were the parts that detailed what the astronauts went through and the experiences, rather than the philosophical ramblings. But all in all, a wonderful book that gave me more insight than I could have ever wanted on the beginnings of the space race.
markjosefjones's review against another edition
3.0
A little bit similar to 'Catch-22' in that Wolfe defines an early theme 'right stuff' of air force pilots and then this is constantly reiterated / regurgitated for the rest of the book. Definitely captures the zeitgeist of the time, but a little too repetitive and shallow in character. Can't believe this, but prefer the movie!
nlbullock1's review against another edition
4.0
Saw the movie and finally read the book - I enjoyed it!