{"product_id":"hidden-figures-the-american-dream-and-the-untold-story-of-the-black-women-mathematicians-who-helped-win-the-space-race-isbn-9780062363602","title":"Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe #1 New York Times\u003cbr\u003ebestseller\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe phenomenal true\u003cbr\u003estory of the black female mathematicians at NASA whose calculations helped fuel\u003cbr\u003esome of America’s greatest achievements in space—a powerful, revelatory history\u003cbr\u003eessential to our understanding of race, discrimination, and achievement in modern\u003cbr\u003eAmerica. The basis for the smash Academy Award-nominated\u003cbr\u003efilm starring Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monae, Kirsten\u003cbr\u003eDunst, and Kevin Costner.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eBefore John Glenn\u003cbr\u003eorbited the earth, or Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, a group of dedicated\u003cbr\u003efemale mathematicians known as “human computers” used pencils, slide rules and\u003cbr\u003eadding machines to calculate the numbers that would launch rockets, and\u003cbr\u003eastronauts, into space. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eAmong these\u003cbr\u003eproblem-solvers were a group of exceptionally talented African American women,\u003cbr\u003esome of the brightest minds of their generation. Originally relegated to\u003cbr\u003eteaching math in the South’s segregated public schools, they were called into\u003cbr\u003eservice during the labor shortages of World War II, when America’s aeronautics\u003cbr\u003eindustry was in dire need of anyone who had the right stuff. Suddenly, these\u003cbr\u003eoverlooked math whizzes had a shot at jobs worthy of their skills, and they\u003cbr\u003eanswered Uncle Sam’s call, moving to Hampton, Virginia and the fascinating,\u003cbr\u003ehigh-energy world of the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eEven as Virginia’s Jim\u003cbr\u003eCrow laws required them to be segregated from their white counterparts, the\u003cbr\u003ewomen of Langley’s all-black “West Computing” group helped America achieve one\u003cbr\u003eof the things it desired most: a decisive victory over the Soviet Union in the\u003cbr\u003eCold War, and complete domination of the heavens. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eStarting in World War\u003cbr\u003eII and moving through to the Cold War, the Civil Rights Movement and the Space\u003cbr\u003eRace, \u003cem\u003eHidden Figures\u003c\/em\u003e follows the interwoven accounts of Dorothy Vaughan,\u003cbr\u003eMary Jackson, Katherine Johnson and Christine Darden, four African American\u003cbr\u003ewomen who participated in some of NASA’s greatest successes. It chronicles\u003cbr\u003etheir careers over nearly three decades they faced challenges, forged alliances\u003cbr\u003eand used their intellect to change their own lives, and their country’s future.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e-WINNER OF\u003cbr\u003eANISFIELD-WOLF AWARD FOR NONFICTION\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e-WINNER BLACK CAUCUS OF AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION BEST NONFICTION BOOK\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e-WINNER NAACP IMAGE AWARD BEST NONFICTION BOOK\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e-WINNER NATIONAL ACADEMIES OF SCIENCES, ENGINEERING AND MEDICINE COMMUNICATION\u003cbr\u003eAWARD | \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe #1 \u003cem\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/em\u003e bestseller\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eNow a Major Motion Picture from Twentieth Century Fox\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe phenomenal true story of the black female mathematicians at NASA whose calculations helped fuel some of America’s greatest achievements in space\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBefore 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAmong these problem-solvers were a group of exceptionally talented African American women. Originally math teachers in the South’s segregated public schools, these gifted professionals answered Uncle Sam’s call during the labor shortages of World War II. With new jobs at the fascinating, high-energy world of the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory in Hampton, Virginia, they finally had a shot at jobs that would push their skills to the limits.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eEven 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eStarting in World War II and moving through to the Cold War, the Civil Rights Movement and the Space Race, \u003cem\u003eHidden Figures\u003c\/em\u003e 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 intellect to change their own lives, and their country’s future.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e | \u003cp\u003e“Much as Tom Wolfe did in “The Right Stuff”, Shetterly moves gracefully between the women’s lives and the broader sweep of history . . . Shetterly, who grew up in Hampton, blends impressive research with an enormous amount of heart in telling these stories - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBoston Globe\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“With HIDDEN FIGURES, Shetterly enacts a revolution no less crucial and pivotal as her subjects. Restoring the truth about the individuals who were at once black, women and astounding mathematicians, in a world that was constructed to stymie them at every step, is no easy task. Shetterly does it with the depth and detail of a skilled historian and the narrative aplomb of a masterful storyteller. … Shetterly is never heavy-handed, but always searingly honest, and it’s refreshing and devastatingly frustrating that the injustices these women endured extended to their erasure from history. … This is a compulsively accessible work for anyone with an interest in history, science, civil rights, women’s rights, or simply a great story.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBookreporter.com\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Restoring the truth about individuals who were at once black, women and astounding mathematicians, in a world that was constructed to stymie them at every step, is no easy task. Shetterly does it with the depth and detail of a skilled historian and the narrative aplomb of a masterful storyteller.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBookreporter.com\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Meticulous… the depth and detail that are the book’s strength make it an effective, fact-based rudder with which would-be scientists and their allies can stabilize their flights of fancy. This hardworking, earnest book is the perfect foil for the glamour still to come.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSeattle Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“You don’t have to be black, female or a whiz at math to be fascinated by the story of these smart human computers.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eRichmond Times-Dispatch\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Hidden Figures is clearly fueled by pride and admiration, a tender account of genuine transcendence and camaraderie.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Genuinely inspiring. . . . Much as Tom Wolfe did in “The Right Stuff”, Shetterly moves gracefully between the women’s lives and the broader sweep of history . . . Shetterly, who grew up in Hampton, blends impressive research with an enormous amount of heart in telling these stories.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBoston Globe\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"William Morrow Paperbacks","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44888776966373,"sku":"NP9780062363602","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780062363602.jpg?v=1730229810","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/hidden-figures-the-american-dream-and-the-untold-story-of-the-black-women-mathematicians-who-helped-win-the-space-race-isbn-9780062363602","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}