I don’t generally write book reviews or even comment on what
I have been reading. My children say I
read too much and I would say reading preferences are all over the place. I enjoy everything from Christian mysteries
to Clive Cussler to biographies written by David McCullough. Well, I stumbled upon a very interesting read
and thought I would share. In part,
because I think it would make a great read for high schoolers. My understanding is that teachers are looking
for reading material that crosses multiple academic disciplines and this book
does it. This book brings together math,
science and history in a unique way.
Hidden Figures by
Margot Lee Shetterly
After I finished this book, I realized I am product of these
women and many others. My chosen
profession when I am not chasing three children around is in what today we call
a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) field. My field even 30 to 40 years ago was
predominately male. Today, new graduates
are predominately female. Though I occasionally
laugh at some surveys I am asked to fill out for eager young researchers about
women in my field, after reading this book I realize how far we have come in
just a short time.
The goal of this book was to tell the untold story of the
women mathematicians, specifically black women mathematicians in the race to
space. What I enjoyed most about this
book is that they looked at multiple women and told their stories. Each within the back drop of what was going on in
the world at time. Also focusing on
their unique contributions to space and aeronautics but also to their communities. In addition, it showed how each one paved the
way for the next and affected change. It
also showed how slow progress could be but how persistence produced change.
I had read about predominately black colleges in the past but had also
thought of them as producing only school teachers and practical education. This book opened my eyes to how advanced
these colleges were and realized that in two generations how much in society
has changed. I also realized that dreams
of one generation can encourage and grow the dreams of the next generation.
I have no idea if the movie that is coming out will be as
good as the book but the book is well worth read.
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/hidden-figures-margot-lee-shetterly/1123655109?ean=9780062363596&st=PLA&sid=BNB_DRS_Core+Shopping+Books_00000000&2sid=Google_&sourceId=PLGoP62464
