Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race

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This book was written by Margot Lee Shetterly and illustrated by Winifred Conkling and Laura Freeman. It is a non-fiction is a picture Book genre. It has 40 pages and discussed about STEM, Great Girl Role Models, History, Science and Nature. It was published by Harper in January 16, 2018. This book is suitable for the readers from 4-8 years olds. It was achieved Coretta Scott King Medal and Honors awards. [1]

Summary

Hidden Figures tells the story of four African-American women mathematicians and the work they did at NASA from the 1940s to the 1960s. [2] The women characters in the story are four African American women Dorothy Vaughn, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden, who all worked at NASA in impressive STEM careers against a backdrop of racial discrimination. Vaughn was hired in 1943 as a human "computer," to do complicated calculations before computers were invented. Her work advanced the development of faster airplanes for World War II. She later learned how to program the earliest computers and taught other women of color to program. Mary Jackson also worked as a computer, testing airplanes in wind tunnels. She fought for the right to attend an all-white school to take the courses she needed to become the first African American female engineer at the lab. Katherine Johnson analyzed turbulence and calculated the course rockets traveled through space. Her work was essential for the first manned space flight. Christine Darden worked on NASA's mission to the moon and designed supersonic airplanes. [3]

Pros

Based on The New York Times bestselling book and Academy Award-nominated movie, this historical picture book was inspired from the true story of the first four black women who worked at NASA. Author Margot Lee Shetterly follows the careers of these women who were really good at math, and their achievements as black women. [4]

There's some positives compilation comments about this book, this book was a great introduction to the women of "Hidden Figures" for young readers. It provides a great synopsis of the original book and movie and includes a brief biography of each woman. A wonderful story telling of the African American women who helped launch the space program. A picture book, children's version of Hidden Figures, of an adult non-fiction book of the same name. There is also a hit film also called Hidden Figures. This is a touching story of four African-American women who worked between 1941-1970 as computers for NASA to help the war effort in making jet planes fly faster and safer and later, rockets in the space program. The women survived discrimination both as females and as African-Americans. It is written in an interesting and comprehensible way that many kids can understand. Kids can also relate to these people and their experiences, a more difficult thing to do with such a complex subject. It is written very well. [5]

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