Hidden Figures
The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race
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Hidden Figures
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Narrated by:
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Robin Miles
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Written by:
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Margot Lee Shetterly
About this listen
The phenomenal true story of the Black female mathematicians at NASA whose calculations helped fuel some of America's greatest achievements in space. Now a major motion picture starring Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monae, Kirsten Dunst, and Kevin Costner.
Before John Glenn orbited the Earth or Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, a group of dedicated female mathematicians known as "human computers" used pencils, slide rules, and adding machines to calculate the numbers that would launch rockets and astronauts into space.
Among these problem solvers were a group of exceptionally talented African American women, some of the brightest minds of their generation. Originally relegated to teaching math in the South's segregated public schools, they were called into service during the labor shortages of World War II, when America's aeronautics industry was in dire need of anyone who had the right stuff. Suddenly these overlooked math whizzes had shots at jobs worthy of their skills, and they answered Uncle Sam's call, moving to Hampton, Virginia, and the fascinating, high-energy world of the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory.
Even as Virginia's Jim Crow laws required them to be segregated from their white counterparts, the women of Langley's all-Black West Computing group helped America achieve one of the things it desired most: a decisive victory over the Soviet Union in the Cold War and complete domination of the heavens.
Starting in World War II and moving through to the Cold War, the civil rights movement, and the space race, Hidden Figures follows the interwoven accounts of Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden, four African American women who participated in some of NASA's greatest successes. It chronicles their careers over nearly three decades as they faced challenges, forged alliances, and used their intellects to change their own lives - and their country's future.
©2016 Margot Lee Shetterly (P)2016 HarperCollins PublishersYou may also enjoy...
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What the critics say
"Robin Miles narrates the true story of four Black women whose work as mathematicians helped break the sound barrier, and set the stage for space exploration.... Miles warmly profiles these hard-working women and their significant contributions to a field still dominated by white men.... Miles's inflections, rhythm, and pace move the story forward in a fascinating timeline of events." ( AudioFile)
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What listeners say about Hidden Figures
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Lynne Menard
- 2021-08-21
Not at all what I expected
I struggled immensely to finish listen. The narrator is good, but rather boring. Do not recommend. The story is more about women, Blacks in particular, and their struggles, then about NASA & space program
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Alison
- 2018-01-14
A moving story that should be told and retold
This wonderful exposé of the brilliance, resilience and amazing contribution that these black women have made to America should be on the curriculum of every school —public and private in the United States, especially courses, schools and universities dominated by white males. The story of the black female mathematicians who paved the way for launching men in space is inspiring and affirming for All and illustrates the true ideals of The American people.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Meghan Ricketts
- 2021-07-16
Exceptional!
A riveting story of one of the previously untold historical narratives of the USA
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- France
- 2018-02-23
It's about time we heard this wonderful story
It shows that awesomeness comes in shapes and sizes like us. We need all the awesomeness we can get!
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Michael
- 2018-09-19
Great topic, poorly presented
I wanted to like this book so much. The subject is great. The story that should be told here is a fantastic one, and more people need to know it. However I feel the author took some artistic liberties when presenting it that I found disingenuous. There are interpretations of the daily life of some of the people we're following that are not really justifiably part of the daily record (EG things they were thinking or feeling) that I think were added to give it a sense of dramatic presence, but this isn't actually a dramatization. Or...if it IS meant to be a dramatization, then it doesn't go far enough. I feel the author should have committed to being a non-fiction documentation, or a dramatization, but instead presents as the former, while trying to borrow from the latter for a bit of reading punch.
#Audible1
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