Overview

The riveting true story of the women who launched America into space. In the 1940s and 50s, when the newly minted Jet Propulsion Laboratory needed quick-thinking mathematicians to calculate velocities and plot trajectories, they didn't turn to male graduates. Rather, they recruited an elite group of young women who, with only pencil, paper, and mathematical prowess, transformed rocket design, helped bring about the first American satellites, and made the exploration of the solar system possible. For the first time, Rise of the Rocket Girls tells the stories of these women--known as human computers --who broke the boundaries of both gender and science. Based on extensive research and interviews with all the living members of the team, Rise of the Rocket Girls offers a unique perspective on the role of women in science: both where we've been, and the far reaches of space to which we're heading.

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9781410491374

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Reviews

Holt does a fine job balancing the personal stories of these women with the technical discussions of their work .... Rise of the Rocket Girls tells a fascinating story of the women who made largely unseen yet essential contributions to the early history of spaceflight. Jeff Foust, The Space Review

Here, math is dramatic, not mundane. Calculating is a physical, even athletic, act....Personal anecdotes...will fascinate general readers and provide valuable primary source materials for future academics. Jennifer Light, Nature Holt seamlessly blends the technical aspects of rocket science and mathematics with an engaging narrative, making for an imminently readable and well-researched work. Crystal Goldman, Library Journal (Starred Review, Editors' Choice Pick) Holt gives voice to the seldom-recognized female mathematicians and scientists who shaped NASA in its earliest years and beyond. ALA Magazine Holt's accessible and heartfelt narrative celebrates the women whose crucial roles in American space science often go unrecognized. Publishers Weekly, Starred Review An inspiring, beautiful book. Nathalia Holt has a gift for capturing the joys and fears of scientists working at the edge of possibility. By profiling the women who learned to keep American rockets flying true, she paints the dawn of the space age with new and vivid colors. Jason Fagone, author of Ingenious: A True Story of Invention, Automotive Daring, and the Race to Revive America Nathalia Holt has written a gorgeously exciting book about an overlooked group of American women who deserve to have their story known. Inspiring and elegantly-told, this fresh slice of history was impossible to put down. Claire Bidwell Smith, author of The Rules of Inheritance These women helped change the course of American history. Nathalia Holt tells their remarkable story with heart and verve. Martha Ackmann, author of The Mercury 13: The True Story of Thirteen Women and the Dream of Space Flight I stole sleep to finish this book and was happy to do so. I admire how Holt gives voice to a group of important (and lesser-known) female scientists who have in the past been overshadowed by their male counterparts. The domestic and the scientific are elegantly rendered--it is an impressive contribution to American history and I was sad to turn the last page. TaraShea Nesbit, bestselling author of The Wives of Los Alamos Rise of the Rocket Girls reveals the fascinating untold story of the heroic women who made America's space program possible. We owe much to these brilliant female pioneers in science-and to Nathalia Holt for reminding us of their extraordinary contributions. Cate Lineberry, author of The Secret Rescue: An Untold Story of American Nurses and Medics Behind Nazi Lines Holt brings her characters to life, tracing them from their hiring as JPL began its career with the Army developing missiles for the Cold War through its conversion to NASA's lead center for planetary exploration. She celebrates their lives, achievements, and service to the nation, as well as their excitement at having front row seats to the earliest voyages of solar system exploration. It's a story whose telling is long overdue. We can be grateful for this enjoyable read. Dr. Charles Elachi, Director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Vice President of the California Institute of Technology, and Professor of Electrical Engineering and Planetary Science Wow! Talk about forgotten history! Those interested in space history will find much to enjoy here, but it is the stories of the women involved, highlighted in sections by decade, that commands attention....and her stellar research is evident on every page. This is an excellent contribution to American history, valuable not only for what it reveals about the space program and gender equality but even more as great reading. Book clubs will be lining up. Colleen Mondor, Booklist (Starred Review) This highly readable, entertaining and informative book tells the story of JPL's 'computers, ' the young women who did the calculations now handled by bits of silicon. Holt brings her characters to life, tracing them from their hiring as JPL began its career with the Army developing missiles for the Cold War through its conversion to NASA's lead center for planetary exploration. She celebrates their lives, achievements, and service to the nation, as well as their excitement at having front row seats to the earliest voyages of solar system exploration. It's a story whose telling is long overdue. We can be grateful for this enjoyable read. Dr. Charles Elachi, Director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Vice President of the California Institute of Technology, and Professor of Electrical Engineering and Planetary Science The immediacy of Holt's writing makes readers feel as if they're alongside the women during their first view of Jupiter, and beyond. Stephanie Sendaula, Library Journal (Editors' Spring Pick) Non-fiction tends to be a good reading slump buster for me, and this one seems perfect. Andi Miller, Book Riot Engaging history....a fresh contribution to women's history. Kirkus Most of our time in history class is spent learning about men, but women were obviously just as vital to innovation and progress. Rise of the Rocket Girls proves that by reexamining the space age--specifically, the group of women who redesigned rocket science...and made that 'one small step for man' possible in the first place. Isabella Biedenharn, Christian Holub, Dana Getz, Entertainment Weekly Holt does a fine job balancing the personal stories of these women with the technical discussions of their work .... Rise of the Rocket Girls tells a fascinating story of the women who made largely unseen yet essential contributions to the early history of spaceflight. Jeff Foust, The Space Review

Author Information

Nathalia Holt is the author of Cured: The People Who Defeated HIV and a former fellow at the Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, MIT and Harvard University. Her writing has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, New York Times, TheAtlantic.com, Slate, Time.com, and Popular Science. She lives in Boston.

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