A review by xxstefaniereadsxx
John Glenn: A Memoir by John Glenn, Nick Taylor
informative
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
John Glenn was born in Ohio in 1921. He became interested in planes and flying at age 8 after flying in a plane with his father. During high school, he was very athletic, playing football, tennis, and basketball. He studied chemistry at Muskingum College, and was also on the football team and in a fraternity. He also found time to obtain a pilot's license. He enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps, then switched to the United States Navy as an aviation cadet during World War II. He served as a pilot in the Korean War, and then became a test pilot. He made the first supersonic transcontinental flight in 1957. He applied to NASA, where he had an illustrious career. One of the most important moments of his NASA career was the Friendship 7 flight. He also entered politics, doing campaigns for Senate and President. He died at age 95 in 2016.
One of the things that I find personally distasteful is that he was quoted as saying that women had no business in space, but then turned around a few years later and said they deserved an opportunity to be taken seriously in science and space. My opinion of him went right into the toilet, but I do realize that people say things or think things and then change their perception after they learn better. I hope that was the case for him. He had a very long and interesting life, with a lot of opportunities and adventures that most people do not get to take. Reading his story about his remarkable life was really interesting, especially since we learned about him briefly in school. If you are a fan of space or a fan of John Glenn in general, do pick up this book. I left out a lot of interesting thing in my brief synopsis that were very notable achievements.
One of the things that I find personally distasteful is that he was quoted as saying that women had no business in space, but then turned around a few years later and said they deserved an opportunity to be taken seriously in science and space. My opinion of him went right into the toilet, but I do realize that people say things or think things and then change their perception after they learn better. I hope that was the case for him. He had a very long and interesting life, with a lot of opportunities and adventures that most people do not get to take. Reading his story about his remarkable life was really interesting, especially since we learned about him briefly in school. If you are a fan of space or a fan of John Glenn in general, do pick up this book. I left out a lot of interesting thing in my brief synopsis that were very notable achievements.