Astronauts

Starred review from November 1, 2019
[How women got mad, busy, and finally, reluctantly, accepted into NASA's corps of astronauts. Recast by the creators of Primates (2013) from NASA oral-history interviews with ex-astronaut Mary Cleave and other eyewitnesses, this likewise lightly fictionalized memoir takes its narrator from childhood interests in science and piloting aircraft to two space shuttle missions and then on to later educational and administrative roles. The core of the tale is a frank and funny account of how women shouldered their way into NASA's masculine culture and as astronaut trainees broke it down by demonstrating that they too had both the competencies and the toughness that added up to the right stuff. Highlighted by a vivid series of scenes showing Cleave with a monkey on her chest, then a chimpanzee, an orangutan, a gorilla, and finally a larger gorilla to symbolize the G-forces of liftoff, Wicks offers cleanly drawn depictions of technical gear, actual training exercises, eye-rolling encounters with sexist reporters and clueless NASA engineers, iconic figures (such as a group portrait of the watershed astronaut class of 1978: "Twenty-six white guys and nine...well...people who were not. Pretty diverse for NASA"), and astronauts at work on the ground and in space. They capture both the heady thrill of space travel and the achievements of those who led the way there. Exhilarating--as well as hilarious, enraging, or both at once depending on the reader. (afterword, print and web resources) (Informational graphic novel. 11-14)

COPYRIGHT(2019) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

March 20, 2020

Gr 4-7-Focusing on the space race through the eyes of the women who made it possible, Ottaviani and Wicks, the creative team behind Primates, return with another accurate, informative, people-focused historical account. Narrator Mary Cleave, a former American astronaut, introduces readers to influential women such as Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space; engineer Dottie Lee, who worked on the Apollo space shield; and aviator Jerrie Cobb, who, as part of the Mercury 13, endured the same physiological and psychological evaluation as astronauts aboard the Mercury Seven. The nonlinear storytelling can be challenging at times, as the plot leaps across years and countries with minimal flagging for the reader. The clever use of a faux Cyrillic font, however, makes it easy to tell when characters are Russian. The artwork is cartoonish and appealing. Though the book includes details that make the subject accessible (one scene discusses the number of tampons needed by female astronauts), technical complexity is never oversimplified. Readers will be intrigued and inspired to dive into further research to understand some of the jargon and learn more about the women profiled here. VERDICT Fans of Ottaviani's T-Minus: The Race to the Moon, as well as those interested in science or space travel, will eagerly gravitate to this title. A stellar addition to all collections.-Tammy Ivins, University of North Carolina at Wilmington

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.