#BookReview WALLY FUNK’S RACE FOR SPACE by SUE NELSON #20BooksOfSummer20 #nonfiction #WallyFunk

ABOUT THE BOOK

In 1961, Wally Funk was among the Mercury 13, the first group of American pilots to pass the Woman in Space programme. Wally sailed through a series of rigorous physical and mental tests, with one of her scores beating all the male Mercury 7 astronauts’, including John Glenn’s, the first American in orbit.

But just one week before the final phase of training, the programme was abruptly cancelled. A combination of politics and prejudice meant that none of the women ever flew into space. Undeterred, Wally went on to become America’s first female aviation safety inspector, though her dream of being an astronaut never dimmed.

In this offbeat odyssey, journalist and fellow space buff Sue Nelson joins Wally, now approaching her eightieth birthday, as she races to make her own giant leap, before it’s too late. Covering their travels across the United States and Europe – taking in NASA’s mission control in Houston, the European Space Agency’s HQ in Paris and Spaceport America in New Mexico, where Wally’s ride into space awaits – this is a uniquely intimate and entertaining portrait of a true aviation trailblazer.

PUBLISHED BY THE WESTBOURNE PRESS

MY REVIEW

This was book 6 of my 20 Books of Summer 2020.

What a blooming amazing woman Wally Funk is!! Even at the age of 80 she’s fighting hard to achieve her dream of going into Space. And in this book we get to hear all about her amazing career and the astonishingly poor treatment that women were receiving in the 1960’s, especially in the world of the US space race when a group of 13 female pilots were put through the rigorous, and brutal, testing process as part of Mercury 13 only to have the funding cut just before the mission. No reason was ever given, and this was such a huge blow to Wally and the other women.

What also comes across throughout this book is the touching friendship between the author, Sue Nelson, and Wally as they travel together visiting a variety of places connecting to the world of Space. They often drive each other nuts, but for the most part they are inspired and enthused by one another and share such a lovely bond as they discover new aspects to the history and the future of Space travel.

This book is so illuminating into the derisive attitudes shown towards the women in the 1960’s and onwards, and even when Wally outshines her male rivals at some of the tests, there are still doubts as to whether women should even be trying out for a place on the next space shuttle. Through this book we get to hear about the amazing achievements she accomplished through her life and even at 80 she’s hungry for more! She’s even bought herself a ticket to be a space tourist on the Virgin Galactic Space which is hoping to be the first commercial space flight – if it ever goes ahead!

Wally is a formidable woman with such an inspiring tale to tell and I’m very grateful for Sue Nelson for sharing it with us. She’s the kind of woman we should be teaching all young girls to look up to and aspire to be. Her energy and determination to prove people wrong is infectious and I just loved spending time in the company of her thanks to this book! I just hope she gets to achieve her dream!!

★★★★

#CoverReveal Wally Funk’s Race to Space by Sue Nelson

Cover Reveal time is here again! And I’m extremely delighted to be taking part in sharing this one as it looks like a fascinating read!  The book is Wally Funk’s Race To Space and here’s more information about it before the big reveal….

It’s the first book to cover the true story of a female pilot who led the way for women in space. She was the youngest and is one of the few surviving Mercury 13 women, as well as well as being the first female aviation safety inspector. Wally Funk’s Race for Space is being published by The Westbourne Press in Hardback, 15th October 2018, £16.99

Wally is currently starring in a Netflix documentary called Mercury 13 and a planned Amazon Prime TV series (with Jessica Chastain) on the Mercury 13.

In the early 1960s, after NASA had selected seven American men to go to space as part of its first-ever astronaut class, a researcher who worked with the agency started his own project. Dr William Randolph Lovelace, along with renowned pilot Jacqueline Cochran, picked 25 American women who had the potential to become astronauts.

Netflix’s new documentary Mercury 13, tells the story of these 13 female aviators who passed the same screening as the male NASA astronauts. When the space agency found out, however, that Lovelace intended to continue testing and training the Mercury 13 women in Pensacola, Florida, the program was shut down. A congressional hearing followed, but the women never made it to space—or into NASA’s ranks.

Wally is the only one of the Mercury 13 to take cosmonaut training and pursue her dream of becoming an astronaut into old age.

In 1961, when 22-year-old aviator Mary Wallace ‘Wally’ Funk arrived at an astronaut test centre in Albuquerque, New Mexico, with ten dollars in her pocket, she was determined to become one of the first women in space. Once there, she successfully passed a series of rigorous physical and psychological tests, which included having ice cold water poured into her ears and electric shocks, before becoming one of the Mercury 13 – the collective name for the 13 American women who had passed the Women in Space Program. But just one week before she was due to enter the final phase of training, the programme was abruptly cancelled and Funk was cheated out of her rightful place in space history. A combination of politics and prejudice meant that none of the Mercury 13 ever flew into space. Undeterred, Wally went on to become America’s first female aviation inspector, though her dream of being an astronaut never dimmed. In Wally Funk’s Race for Space, journalist and fellow space buff Sue Nelson joins Wally, now approaching her eightieth birthday, as she prepares to make her giant leap – before it’s too late. Following their travels across the United States and Europe – taking in NASA’s mission control in Houston and Spaceport America in New Mexico,where Wally’s ride on Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic spaceplane awaits – this is a uniquely intimate and entertaining portrait of a true aviation trailblazer.

Time for the cover!! Are you ready?!! 

Join the conversation #WallyFunk

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