chiarabruck's review against another edition
3.0
Super interesting and important story! However the book sometimes felt like a textbook, that’s why it took me half a year to finish the book.
brittanykroeckel's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 more like
I wanted to really like this book and I believe it touches upon a very intriguing and important topic. However the book was hard to follow and writing was dry IMO. Some parts of the books felt like fluff and could have been left out. At a couple points I felt like just stopping and not picking up the book again but I wanted to respect these women who did significant things in our history and listen to as much of their story as the author put in this book.
I would have liked to see more of what these women did specifically and what literature and missions they contributed to (Katherine’s story was the closest to this). It felt more of like a surface level generalization of their stories and at times felt more like the history of Langley/NACA/NASA than about the women involved. Also, in the epilogue, the author chose to introduce two additional stories of women (one briefly mentioned earlier in the book) and I felt like that was a flop. I would’ve liked to see them included in the chapters of the book and not felt like a last minute addition.
It mostly came down to the writing style. I want to give it a three because it’s an amazing story, but the way it was displayed in this book made it difficult for me to immerse myself in and enjoy. I have yet to watch the movie though, so I may see how the story is portrayed in a cinematic manner.
I wanted to really like this book and I believe it touches upon a very intriguing and important topic. However the book was hard to follow and writing was dry IMO. Some parts of the books felt like fluff and could have been left out. At a couple points I felt like just stopping and not picking up the book again but I wanted to respect these women who did significant things in our history and listen to as much of their story as the author put in this book.
I would have liked to see more of what these women did specifically and what literature and missions they contributed to (Katherine’s story was the closest to this). It felt more of like a surface level generalization of their stories and at times felt more like the history of Langley/NACA/NASA than about the women involved. Also, in the epilogue, the author chose to introduce two additional stories of women (one briefly mentioned earlier in the book) and I felt like that was a flop. I would’ve liked to see them included in the chapters of the book and not felt like a last minute addition.
It mostly came down to the writing style. I want to give it a three because it’s an amazing story, but the way it was displayed in this book made it difficult for me to immerse myself in and enjoy. I have yet to watch the movie though, so I may see how the story is portrayed in a cinematic manner.
kmayy's review against another edition
2.0
Unfortunately, I feel like the story is far more interesting than the novel. These women are amazing and that shines through, but the writing is dull.
robynryle's review against another edition
5.0
How many other stories are there out there like this that we don't know? Thanks to Margot Lee Shetterly for sharing this one.
itsy719's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.25
readingrainbowturtle's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
relaxing
medium-paced
4.0
kaeliowl's review against another edition
I wanted to love this book. I love the story and the movie and the inspiration. I loved learning about this group of invisible women and their impact on history. But when I read a book of history, I want the author to use historical methods, and this author was a little too liberal with her opinions about people's thoughts and motivations. If that kind of thing doesn't bother you, you'll probably love this book as much as I wanted to and you should spread the word.
tkelley23's review against another edition
5.0
This book isn’t my usually read but I was given it for a book club. The history in this book is so rich - so many things about the United States I was never taught in an academic setting. It’s both unsettling and inspiring.