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sanj119's review
5.0
There's no doubt that Col. Chris Hadfield is one of the best astronauts ever. Apart from being the first Canadian Astronaut to go to space and the numerous accolades he received as pilot, astronaut, CAPCOM, Chief of Robotics and Chief of ISS missions, he also made space accessible for everybody by his well known videos about how challenging astronauts find the mundane things(such as drinking water, cutting nails, haircuts etc.) that we do on earth, in space, capturing the interests of many, including myself. So, it's not really a big surprise that this book is hands down, the best memoir-cum-inspirational book-cum-astronaut's POV about space and life on earth that I have ever read.
“In any new situation, whether it involves an elevator or a rocket ship, you will almost certainly be viewed in one of three ways. As a minus one: actively harmful, someone who creates problems. Or as a zero: your impact is neutral and doesn't tip the balance one way or the other. Or you'll be seen as a plus one: someone who actively adds value. Everyone wants to be a plus one, of course. But proclaiming your plus-oneness at the outset almost guarantees you'll be perceived as a minus one, regardless of the skills you bring to the table or how you actually perform.”
“In any new situation, whether it involves an elevator or a rocket ship, you will almost certainly be viewed in one of three ways. As a minus one: actively harmful, someone who creates problems. Or as a zero: your impact is neutral and doesn't tip the balance one way or the other. Or you'll be seen as a plus one: someone who actively adds value. Everyone wants to be a plus one, of course. But proclaiming your plus-oneness at the outset almost guarantees you'll be perceived as a minus one, regardless of the skills you bring to the table or how you actually perform.”
binabik's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
forwalaka's review against another edition
3.0
Первая половина книги интересная и вдохновляющая, вторая скучная и похожа по стилю на содержание сайта НАСА, такая рекламная брошюра об МКС. 2,5 округлить до 3.
annbanane's review
5.0
Super interesting life told by an engaging storyteller. Hadfield makes even technical details comprehensible and is able to pull life lessons/advice that is widely applicable.
themanalive's review against another edition
5.0
An inspiring read. At the age of 38 I have re-found my desire to be an astronaut!! Bit late I fear but reading this book gave a real insight into the mind and experiences of a career astronaut. My only criticism is that it could have been a lot longer with more detail about his trips into space and the training/other roles he had at Nasa in the intervening years.
kauther's review
5.0
Simply, the book is very fun and engaging. It portrays life through the eyes of an astronaut, it shows life in the perspective of a successful person and a problem solver, and, most importantly, shows the life of Chris Hadfield as a mere person.
micheleaiello's review
5.0
A fascinating look into the life of one of the most well-known astronauts and full of great lessons to apply to our daily life on Earth.
mastersal's review against another edition
4.0
Chronicles of Reading with Mom - continued
So Mom, through some judicious cheating (aka taking my audiobook before me), finished this before me. So I guess she wins! However, that was ok - as I eventually got this back from the library and finished it off in August.
The audiobook is definitely the way to go here. The book is read by the author which gives the book more credibility. The tone is a little folksy and reads a bit like self-help because the author has worked the book around a “lessons learnt” approach. The chapters all have a bit of a takeaway which feel like a business talk. I didn’t mind that but it took a bit of getting used to.
Mr Hadfield has a wonderful attitude which was quite inspiring. It was a little cheesy but I had to keep in mind that he really practices this philosophy which makes it all the more real.
Plus, the audio definitely helps with all the science stuff that is talked about. I am not sure why I didn’t expect this to be technical and science-y. Some of the more detailed examples were super interesting - like the water droplet in his helmet or the death simulations - but be forewarned there are lots of examples here. Some of them did run together.
I did find the latter half of the book, when Mr Hadfield was talking about this experience at the ISS, much stronger. This is probably because he wrote the book right after he returned from the ISS and that was fresh in this mind.
In the end I found this book optimistic, considered, and cheerful. I wasn’t particularly was moved by it but it was good to sit with the advice and think about the issues of life and space and the vastness that is our lives - cheese and all.
4 stars
I will also say that the following is worth checking out (that made me smile and tear a little):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvAnfi8WpVE
Mr. Hadfield sings quite well
So Mom, through some judicious cheating (aka taking my audiobook before me), finished this before me. So I guess she wins! However, that was ok - as I eventually got this back from the library and finished it off in August.
The audiobook is definitely the way to go here. The book is read by the author which gives the book more credibility. The tone is a little folksy and reads a bit like self-help because the author has worked the book around a “lessons learnt” approach. The chapters all have a bit of a takeaway which feel like a business talk. I didn’t mind that but it took a bit of getting used to.
Mr Hadfield has a wonderful attitude which was quite inspiring. It was a little cheesy but I had to keep in mind that he really practices this philosophy which makes it all the more real.
Plus, the audio definitely helps with all the science stuff that is talked about. I am not sure why I didn’t expect this to be technical and science-y. Some of the more detailed examples were super interesting - like the water droplet in his helmet or the death simulations - but be forewarned there are lots of examples here. Some of them did run together.
I did find the latter half of the book, when Mr Hadfield was talking about this experience at the ISS, much stronger. This is probably because he wrote the book right after he returned from the ISS and that was fresh in this mind.
In the end I found this book optimistic, considered, and cheerful. I wasn’t particularly was moved by it but it was good to sit with the advice and think about the issues of life and space and the vastness that is our lives - cheese and all.
4 stars
I will also say that the following is worth checking out (that made me smile and tear a little):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvAnfi8WpVE
Mr. Hadfield sings quite well
lachlan_steele's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
4.5