By Margot Lee Shetterly
After I heard about this group of courageous women I could not wait to read the book or watch the movie. I am sad to say that the book is rather dry and reads like informative text. These beautiful, brave women fought long and hard. This book spent a lot of time dwelling on the news of the time of WWII and Civil Rights, and rarely gave one a glimpse into the lives of these women.
Hidden Figures follows four women and how they became part of Langley and computers for the United States. Their drive and determination to be recognized and productive members of NACA and NASA is noteworthy. It is very eye opening that they even had the opportunity, especially when Civil Rights had not occurred. I was surprised by a lot of the historical information, but sorely missed some of the personal details about their day to day lives. These women were incredible, mothers, wives and mathematicians. It totally blows my mind they were able to make these extraordinary difficult computations, no matter they race or gender. Not only that but the day to day struggle proving that they were capable, so inspirational.
Although I appreciated this book, I wish it would have a little more personal detail. It was a fairly simple read and think that anybody over fifth grade would enjoy the information. I am giving this book a 3 out of 5 stars. If you are someone that enjoys history and would like a window into the home front during and after WWII, pick up your copy!
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