The Last American Hero
The Remarkable Life of John Glenn
-
- $19.99
Publisher Description
On February 20, 1962, John Glenn became a national star. That morning at Cape Canaveral, the small-town boy from Ohio took his place atop a
rocket and soared into space.
He became celebrated in all corners of the world as not just the first American to orbit the Earth, but as the first space traveler to take the human race with him. Refusing to let that dramatic day define his life, he went on to become a four-term US senator—and returned to space at the age of seventy-seven. The Last American Hero is a stunning examination of the layers that formed the man: a hero of the Cold War, a two-time astronaut, a veteran senator, a devoted husband and father, and much more. At a time when an increasingly cynical world needs heroes, John Glenn's aura burns brightly in American memory.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Historian George (The Cuban Missile Crisis: The Threshold of Nuclear War) presents an overly hagiographic biography of John Glenn (1921 2016) that fails to illuminate his life as the first American to orbit the Earth. George starts with Glenn and his future wife meeting as children, and proceeds to show Glenn growing into a patriotic young man whose Presbyterian upbringing left him unprepared for the "rampant swearing and lascivious comments" he encountered at a WWII-era training camp for Naval aviators. In Korea, Glenn's recklessness in combat raised concerns, but George assures readers that "Glenn was not a cowboy simply looking for a wild ride. He believed in the Korean War." George spends more time on press reactions to Glenn's time in space than his historic ride, writing, "he made Americans feel proud, honorable, invincible, united." George's flat, r sum -like approach continues through Glenn's subsequent career as a four-term U.S. senator from Ohio and unsuccessful 1984 run for Democratic presidential candidate. Those looking for comforting memories of the space race's halcyon days as a balm for polarizing times will be rewarded; everyone else should read (or reread) The Right Stuff.
