To Fly Among the Stars by Rebecca Siegel

Post date: September 16, 2021

During the late 1950s and 1960s the United States was in a Space Race with the Soviet Union. Who would be the first to launch a rocket, satellite, person into space? The Mercury 7 were the first astronauts chosen to for NASA's astronaut program. The all underwent grueling tests before being accepted to the program. There were also women who wanted to become astronauts. But in the 1950s and 1960s, NASA said no. Thirteen women, who were accomplished test pilots, air racers, and flight instructors, were secretly chosen by a brigadier general and a doctor to undergo the same tests as the Mercury 7 astronauts. All of them passed. This book discusses the challenges and discrimination these women faced while trying to become astronauts.