Very few jerks have ever been to space, says veteran astronaut Michael Massimino. Why and how this is, it could be argued, is the subject of his remarkable memoir. As a man who clung to a childhood dream, despite countless rejections along the way that threatened to keep him from joining NASA, Massiminio made it into one of the most elite clubs in the world--those who have left the planet and lived to tell about it. Massimino's story is a classic, his voice that of a natural raconteur, and his insight into the space program singular. All this from a six-foot-three kid from Long Island who is afraid of heights.
With humor, humility and intelligence, Massimino takes us through his childhood obsession with space, his reconnection with his astronaut ambitions thanks to the movie "The Right Stuff," and his multiple attempts to gain admission to NASA. Once he finally becomes an astronaut, the plot only thickens as he travels to the Hubble Space Telescope and spacewalks for the first time. We see him deal with the loss of his fellow astronauts in the Columbia disaster, and also make the tough decision not to return to space so that he can be with his family. Along the way, we learn about the many men and woman who make NASA the hotbed of innovation and exploration - and characters - that it is, and get to hear Mike's impassioned argument for why we must never, ever give up the dream of space travel.