A review by ipomoea
Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid

adventurous emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

 
I received an advance copy from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Yet again, Taylor Jenkins Reid methodically pulled me in and then stomped all over my heart. In 1981, a class of aspiring astronauts start training at NASA, all of whom are young, brilliant, and hungry for the stars. The main character is Joan Goodwin, an astronomy professor who's always stepped aside to help others, most glaringly her younger sister Barbara. When Barbara got pregnant out of wedlock, Joan was the one who stepped in as the other parent, despite her academic career. And Frances, Barb's daughter, has always been her touchpoint, the person she loves more than anyone. 

In a class of scientists and military pilots, everyone is used to being the best in the room, and those personalities clash in varying ways. This class is historic, one of the first to include women. Joan, Lydia, Donna, and Vanessa come to the program with different backgrounds, but all have the same goal, and it’s up to them whether they help each other up or tear each other down. Through years of training, relationships deepen, dreams develop, and when it comes time to launch, everyone wants to be on it.

Like Reid’s other books, this moves through time, back and forth, slowly unfolding the story. She’s done the research and incorporated it without info-dumping, and the relationship I knew was coming was still a delight when revealed and explored. I expect this will be one of the big books of the summer, and I’m stoked to share it with patrons.

 
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