I really enjoyed this honest recollection of a life leading up to a career in space. It was written simply, but with emotion and is a great book to recommend on the subject of unlikely outcomes. It was inspiring, funny, heart-breaking...everything I want in a memoir.

Well, I love astronaut stories, so it’s no surprise that I loved this book. I find it absolutely fascinating how someone progresses to become an astronaut, and the hard work that Massimino put into achieving his dream was really inspiring. That being said, the two main things I took away from this book are this: the author once physically, with his own hands, just plain old ripped a piece off the Hubble telescope when the screws stripped and he couldn’t get it off the way that had been planned and practiced repeatedly; and his next door neighbor, also an astronaut, was Tom Cruise’s flight stunt double in Top Gun.

"Up to that point I'd been too excited and too busy training to let myself get scared, but out there at the launch head it me hit me: maybe this wasn't such a good idea."

This book is inspiring and revealing.

We follow Mike "Mass" Massimino's dream journey from wanting to be an astronaut to his work on the Hubble in space. This book shares Massimino's challenges and accomplishments as well as his thoughts throughout the training process.

While this book was interesting and I definitely got a sense of how much Massimino wanted to be an astronaut, I also felt like his challenges are sort of glossed over. He had trouble with his eyes so NASA gave him a chance to fix his eyes. He didn't pass his PhD the first time so he had another opportunity. Maybe it's because we know that Massimino made it to space, but I didn't feel like there was a lot of tension about whether or not he'd become an astronaut - it sort of seemed like everything came together for him.

That doesn't mean it's not a journey against odds though. Massimino shares what it's like to go to space and all the dangers that go with it. The book is an enjoyable read.

If you’ve ever wondered what the difficult journey from dreaming about becoming an astronaut, to actually becoming an astronaut, is really like then this is the book for you. If you’re looking for an astronaut biography that is only about the astronaut’s time in space, then this is not the book for you. The author takes us along on his trip through his childhood, young adulthood, and adulthood as he struggles with his desire to become an astronaut, and what lengths he must go to in order to realize his dream. Having been someone that seriously wanted to become an astronaut (and learned early on that I had too many “issues” to be overlooked), I found his story to be exceptionally interesting. Especially since becoming an astronaut at all, regardless of how super-duper awesome you are, is a total underdog excursion. I found it fascinating to learn about his trial and tribulations, as well as the sheer amount luck that came his way to make the dream a reality. Although I did enjoy all of this, and it truly did keep me glued to the pages, I enjoyed his time in space more than anything. His descriptions of how he saw the Earth from so far above it, are truly breathtaking and makes me so want to know what that’s really like. Maybe someday I’ll get to go to Mars and I can see it then (yes, I know, wishful thinking).

Many thanks to Netgalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for a review.

This book will take you through the life of an American hero. Everyone should read this book and aspire to be like Mike.. The stories he tells are amazing and I was sucked right in. I would love to meet Mike and have him answer all my questions. If this book is any indication he is an extremely interesting man

Stemming from my interest in science fiction, I have a weakness for most things NASA-related and lately I've noted how much I enjoy reading biographies and non-fiction, so this book was a much-anticipated ARC for me.

Mike Massimino is not a name that would be recognized in most homes today, but it's more than likely that it doesn't matter to Mike. Mike is an astronaut, a darned good one, who gave it up in order to spend some important years with his family. Still he would tell you of the importance of the space program and has represented NASA in the media.

Massimino is a product of the era. While fascinated by space, it was the movie The Right Stuff that led to his particularly strong interest in becoming an astronaut. And Massimino was the first astronaut to send a tweet from space, paving the way for future astronauts to take on social media and bring back a strong interest in the space program to the average Earthman.

Massimino was one of the main astronauts to work on and repair the Hubble telescope in space and yet if people recognize him today it's because of his appearances, as an astronaut, on the hit television show <em>The Big Bang Theory</em> (he's the astronaut who gives Howard Wolowitz the nickname 'Froot Loops'). Oh how media plays such a major role in this man's life!

One of the first things people will note about Massimino is his positive, can-do spirit. Once he sets his mind on becoming an astronaut it never really occurs to him that it won't happen. Okay...that's not quite true.... Massimino is initially passed-over for astronaut status because of his eyes. His vision was poor enough that he could not see well without glasses, which was something that NASA could not accept. His drive to becoming an astronaut seemed to end then, but with the help of some friends and colleagues, he discovered some cutting-edge technology that corrected his sight which, viola, got him into astronaut training!

While he doesn't say it outright, what we see time and time again is that you often have to create your own luck. This is something you do by putting yourself out there, not accepting 'no' when you don't want to, and by having a lot of connections (and you have a lot of connections by being a positive person (who wants to hang around negative people all day?).

Despite his optimism, Mike Massimino really understates his abilities. He's trying, I suspect, to not look like he's bragging or boasting so he's really down-playing a lot of his accomplishments. At times I found this annoying - particularly when he was talking about college and getting admitted to Columbia University. He writes about not being that great academically - a good student, but not the smartest, not the most athletic, etc. Still, he was accepted to this prestigious school. That had to have come from somewhere. I can speak as a father of a child who, top of his class, Eagle Scout, basketball, cross-country, track participant, and top band student, wanted so desperately to go to an Ivy League school but was denied to all that he applied to, that you don't 'just get in' to these schools. Something else is at play, though it's hard to say just what that might be. (We live in a very small, rural town in the Midwest and no one has been accepted to an Ivy League school from our 100+ year old school in its history, so it wasn't much of a surprise.)

But that constant down-playing - 'I wasn't the best, but I was chosen' - does grow just a little old. Later on we see it's because of his drive and his out-going personality, but early in the book it just comes across as great good fortune falling at his feet.

Massimino shines in the latter section of the book when writing about his astronaut training and experience. His work to repair the Hubble is spell-binding in his tale and I could almost feel the exhilaration of seeing the Earth and the stars from space the way he describes it.

Massimino is also quite poetic and manages to find some beautiful ways to talk about the work that an astronaut does, and he relates it to the everyman.
<blockquote>If you’ve ever wondered what the right stuff is, that’s what the right stuff is—the real right stuff. It’s not about being crazy enough to strap yourself to the top of a bomb. That’s actually the easy part. It’s more about character, serving a purpose greater than yourself, putting the other guy first, and being able to do that every single day in every aspect of your life. People ask me all the time what it takes to become an astronaut. It’s not about being the smartest or having the most college degrees. The real qualifications for being an astronaut are: Is this someone I’d trust with my life? Will this person help look after my family if I don’t make it home? … Astronauts are exceptional in terms of what they’ve accomplished, but in terms of where we came from we’re regular people. What we have in common is this shared goal, to serve the people and push the boundaries of knowledge for all mankind.</blockquote>
Looking for a good book? Whether you like reading biographies, books about NASA or the space program, non-fiction, or just a nice, positive, well-told story, Spaceman, by Mike Massimino is worth exploring.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

He’s a rocket man

Spaceman: An Astronaut’s Unlikely Journey to Unlock the Secrets of the Universe by Mike Massimino (Crown Publishing, $28).

If you watch The Big Bang Theory, you know Mike Massimino, the foil to Howard’s bumbling trip to the International Space Station. In Spaceman: An Astronaut’s Unlikely Journey to Unlock the Secrets of the Universe, Massimino’s memoir, we get an inside look at the making of an astronaut, as well as some insight into what it’s really like to work in space. It’s more than “the right stuff,” though Massimino does cover the flight readiness program, but he points out that “nothing you do on this planet can ever truly prepare you for what it means to leave it.”

An excellent story of one person’s work to reach his goal, this memoir is also an ode to the sheer joy of science and exploration.