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3.72k reviews for:
Talentos Ocultos: La Genialidad No Tiene Color. La Fuerza No Tiene Género. El Valor No Tiene Límite.
Margot Lee Shetterly
3.83 AVERAGE
3.72k reviews for:
Talentos Ocultos: La Genialidad No Tiene Color. La Fuerza No Tiene Género. El Valor No Tiene Límite.
Margot Lee Shetterly
3.83 AVERAGE
Book on CD read by Robin Miles
3.5***
The subtitle is all the synopsis anyone needs: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race.
Shetterly grew up in Hampton, Virginia, and her father worked at NASA’s Langley Research Center. She met many women and men he worked with, knew them from their neighborhood, and from church. But as she grew older she came to realize how extraordinary their story was, and also how unknown their story was. She wrote this book to ensure that future generations would not forget these women.
I had seen the movie, and it was very well done. But the movie covers just a few years, and compresses the story of many women into three characters. Yes, much of what was depicted in the film was accurate, but not everything happened to just these three women. Shetterly’s book covers the time from the early years of WW2, when men were scarce, and women stepped up to fill jobs as part of their patriotic duty to help win the war, to the Moon Landing in August 1969.
I found it very interesting to read about the way in which these women, highly intelligent and well educated, finally found some measure of recognition for their contributions. I applaud Shetterly’s efforts to bring their story to the forefront of America’s consciousness, and I’m glad I read it. However, this is not a gripping tale; there is some repetition, because the stories of these women (and their families) were so similar. I’m glad she included an epilogue to give some information about how they fared through the rest of their lives.
Robin Miles does a fine job narrating the audio book. It was a little difficult to keep the characters straight at first (so many similar names), but full names are frequently used, which did help somewhat.
I had a copy of the text as well, and was surprised that there were no photos of the women included. I would have liked to put a face to the names.
3.5***
The subtitle is all the synopsis anyone needs: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race.
Shetterly grew up in Hampton, Virginia, and her father worked at NASA’s Langley Research Center. She met many women and men he worked with, knew them from their neighborhood, and from church. But as she grew older she came to realize how extraordinary their story was, and also how unknown their story was. She wrote this book to ensure that future generations would not forget these women.
I had seen the movie, and it was very well done. But the movie covers just a few years, and compresses the story of many women into three characters. Yes, much of what was depicted in the film was accurate, but not everything happened to just these three women. Shetterly’s book covers the time from the early years of WW2, when men were scarce, and women stepped up to fill jobs as part of their patriotic duty to help win the war, to the Moon Landing in August 1969.
I found it very interesting to read about the way in which these women, highly intelligent and well educated, finally found some measure of recognition for their contributions. I applaud Shetterly’s efforts to bring their story to the forefront of America’s consciousness, and I’m glad I read it. However, this is not a gripping tale; there is some repetition, because the stories of these women (and their families) were so similar. I’m glad she included an epilogue to give some information about how they fared through the rest of their lives.
Robin Miles does a fine job narrating the audio book. It was a little difficult to keep the characters straight at first (so many similar names), but full names are frequently used, which did help somewhat.
I had a copy of the text as well, and was surprised that there were no photos of the women included. I would have liked to put a face to the names.
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
slow-paced
challenging
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
Amazing history and information! Flow of the Narrative wasn't as great for casual reading.
informative
medium-paced
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
hopeful
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Sexism
Es uno de los primeros (si no el primero) libros de historia que leo por placer, y terminé aprendiendo un montón, sobre muchos más temas que el que es foco de este libro.
Me encantó poder conocer la historia de estas mujeres que desafiaban las normas racistas, sexistas y científicas de lo que era o no posible en el momento. Es muy emocionante compartir sus logros con ellas, saber que ganaron tantas batallas y que conocer sobre ellas es una victoria más en sus haberes.
Si bien es a veces un poco repetitivo, y se mezclan las historias de Katherine, Mary y Dorothy al punto de difuminarse los límites entre quién es quién, siento que el formato no cronológico mantuvo mi interés y me hizo volver día tras día a seguir conociendo la historia.
Me encantó poder conocer la historia de estas mujeres que desafiaban las normas racistas, sexistas y científicas de lo que era o no posible en el momento. Es muy emocionante compartir sus logros con ellas, saber que ganaron tantas batallas y que conocer sobre ellas es una victoria más en sus haberes.
Si bien es a veces un poco repetitivo, y se mezclan las historias de Katherine, Mary y Dorothy al punto de difuminarse los límites entre quién es quién, siento que el formato no cronológico mantuvo mi interés y me hizo volver día tras día a seguir conociendo la historia.
3.5* actually. I LOVED the importance of this story and these courageously brilliant women who deserve this accolade. The author researched their stories and the history so meticulously. Set against the backdrop of WWII, the space race, and the civil rights movement, these infamously underrated human computers accomplished more than history has ever given them credit for, and I am so thankful that their stories have been finally brought into the open and celebrated.
I grudgingly agree, however, with many other reviews that this reads more like a textbook, and that their personal struggles seemed - especially for the time period - almost seamless. They rose to the top of their field amidst the racism of blacks and women, but I did not feel their struggles. It felt as if their continuous rise up the science ladder was without the obvious bumps or bruises along the way. I KNOW there had to be issues of discomfort, frustration, belittlement, etc., but the author glossed over these and instead chose to focus on the history of the time. She rattled off so many names, dates, and events that meant nothing to me, though I felt like I was supposed to know them and felt silly for my ignorance.
I suppose I would have liked this story better if she had chosen to write it with a more personal touch, in the novel style of historical fiction. I wanted to KNOW these ladies, not just know about them. However, this may say more about me as a reader needing that entertainment punch instead of appreciating the narrative history genre.
Still, with that being said, these women are miracles of their time. This is a story worth reading, and I am thankful for their place in our history. I would highly recommend this for everyone because their story is so crucial to the space program. Who knew?
I grudgingly agree, however, with many other reviews that this reads more like a textbook, and that their personal struggles seemed - especially for the time period - almost seamless. They rose to the top of their field amidst the racism of blacks and women, but I did not feel their struggles. It felt as if their continuous rise up the science ladder was without the obvious bumps or bruises along the way. I KNOW there had to be issues of discomfort, frustration, belittlement, etc., but the author glossed over these and instead chose to focus on the history of the time. She rattled off so many names, dates, and events that meant nothing to me, though I felt like I was supposed to know them and felt silly for my ignorance.
I suppose I would have liked this story better if she had chosen to write it with a more personal touch, in the novel style of historical fiction. I wanted to KNOW these ladies, not just know about them. However, this may say more about me as a reader needing that entertainment punch instead of appreciating the narrative history genre.
Still, with that being said, these women are miracles of their time. This is a story worth reading, and I am thankful for their place in our history. I would highly recommend this for everyone because their story is so crucial to the space program. Who knew?
3.5* actually. I LOVED the importance of this story and these courageously brilliant women who deserve this accolade. The author researched their stories and the history so meticulously. Set against the backdrop of WWII, the space race, and the civil rights movement, these infamously underrated human computers accomplished more than history has ever given them credit for, and I am so thankful that their stories have been finally brought into the open and celebrated.
I grudgingly agree, however, with many other reviews that this reads more like a textbook, and that their personal struggles seemed - especially for the time period - almost seamless. They rose to the top of their field amidst the racism of blacks and women, but I did not feel their struggles. It felt as if their continuous rise up the science ladder was without the obvious bumps or bruises along the way. I KNOW there had to be issues of discomfort, frustration, belittlement, etc., but the author glossed over these and instead chose to focus on the history of the time. She rattled off so many names, dates, and events that meant nothing to me, though I felt like I was supposed to know them and felt silly for my ignorance.
I suppose I would have liked this story better if she had chosen to write it with a more personal touch, in the novel style of historical fiction. I wanted to KNOW these ladies, not just know about them. However, this may say more about me as a reader needing that entertainment punch instead of appreciating the narrative history genre.
Still, with that being said, these women are miracles of their time. This is a story worth reading, and I am thankful for their place in our history. I would highly recommend this for everyone because their story is so crucial to the space program. Who knew?
I grudgingly agree, however, with many other reviews that this reads more like a textbook, and that their personal struggles seemed - especially for the time period - almost seamless. They rose to the top of their field amidst the racism of blacks and women, but I did not feel their struggles. It felt as if their continuous rise up the science ladder was without the obvious bumps or bruises along the way. I KNOW there had to be issues of discomfort, frustration, belittlement, etc., but the author glossed over these and instead chose to focus on the history of the time. She rattled off so many names, dates, and events that meant nothing to me, though I felt like I was supposed to know them and felt silly for my ignorance.
I suppose I would have liked this story better if she had chosen to write it with a more personal touch, in the novel style of historical fiction. I wanted to KNOW these ladies, not just know about them. However, this may say more about me as a reader needing that entertainment punch instead of appreciating the narrative history genre.
Still, with that being said, these women are miracles of their time. This is a story worth reading, and I am thankful for their place in our history. I would highly recommend this for everyone because their story is so crucial to the space program. Who knew?
informative
inspiring
This is a must read if you want to have an accurate portrayal of American 1900s history. This is stuff, unfortunately, not taught in schools. It is also inpisiring and hopeful. These women are so strong and deserving of more public recognition.