4.1/5 As one of my favorite films happens to be October Sky, I long shelved Homer H. Hickam, Jr’s Rocket Boys on my To Be Read (TBR). As I participated in the Across the USA Stellar Reading Challenge (SRC), I repeatedly saw Rocket Boys recommended for a book set in West Virginia. Thus, Rocket Boys finally made the move from my TBR to my Read shelf!
“The #1 New York Times bestselling memoir that inspired the film October Sky, Rocket Boys is a uniquely American memoir–a powerful, luminous story of coming of age at the dawn of the 1960s, of a mother’s love and a father’s fears, of a group of young men who dreamed of launching rockets into outer space…and who made those dreams come true.With the grace of a natural storyteller, NASA engineer Homer Hickam paints a warm, vivid portrait of the harsh West Virginia mining town of his youth, evoking a time of innocence and promise, when anything was possible, even in a company town that swallowed its men alive. A story of romance and loss, of growing up and getting out, Homer Hickam’s lush, lyrical memoir is a chronicle of triumph–at once exquisitely written and marvelously entertaining.”
Hickam’s writing in Rocket Boys truly transported me to late 1950s West Virginia. With 20/20 vision, I viewed all the “players” in this memoir. Hickam left me in awe of his recall of the various people which helped him and the other boys launch rockets. Gnomies, if you’re on the fence about reading nonfiction, I recommend starting with a book such as Rocket Boys which definitely falls into the category of “narrative nonfiction.” Caveat: you might want to watch October Sky; I certainly do!
Quotes come from book flaps/cover and are featured on color blocks.
Starry Night Elf 