BOOK: The Rise of the Rocket Girls by Nathalia Holt

The Rise of the Rocket Girls: The Women Who Propelled Us, From Missiles to the Moon to Mars by Nathalia Holt (9 h 38 min) read by Erin Bennett

I haven't seen Hidden Figures or read that book, but I would imagine the same basic information is covered. I'll have to try Hidden Figures to compare. 

Starting in the 1930s and the rise of rocket technology, The Rise of the Rocket Girls follows the roles that women played in JPL (Jet Propulsion Labs) as they develop rockets for NASA. Women who were strong in math (yay for women in math!) were hired as computers, to do the calculations.

Holt examines the role of many women as they were hired, as they dealt with getting married, working with children, and providing the expertise needed. I couldn't always keep all the women straight, and sometimes Holt goes into way too much detail (the ball game were the last couple outs of the game on television were described. Really?)

Overall, this was a decent read and showing the contribution of women to science in space technology.