3.5 stars
I can't lie...I almost DNF'd this about 50% of the way through. I found the writing to be pretty dry and somewhat detached, which surprised me since I love the movie so much and found it to be full of heart and completely engaging.

That said, I felt like the last third of this book is really strong as it gets closer to the space race and these women's part in making it a reality. Unfortunately, then it goes into an 'epilogue' that isn't really an epilogue but instead introduces more 'characters' (I know they are real women, but even the author refers to them as characters.) and their stories. I would've preferred hearing more about the ladies we had been following for the previous 300 pages.

I really enjoyed the moments where we saw the impact that these women had on the world around them and their connections to their families. One of my favorite stories surrounds a soapbox race. One of the mathematician's (I think it was Mary Jackson, but I'm not 100% sure) sons wins the race and when he's asked what he wants to be when he grows up he says, "I want to be an engineer, just like my mom." As a woman, this would make me proud. As a woman of color breaking barriers like these women were, I can't even imagine how something like that would feel. Especially considering the fact that, at this point in time, women weren't given the same recognition as men were. They weren't called engineers, even though that's what they were.

This is an important book discussing important topics. I just wish it had been structured a little differently. I felt like there were sections that just weren't holding my attention, mostly regarding the more technical aspects of their jobs. When it got into more of the social and political aspects of this point in time and the personal lives of Katherine, Mary, and Dorothy, I found myself far more interested.

I listened to this on audiobook, which is my preferred method of digesting non-fiction. The narrator is okay, but she seems very detached, like she is giving a report rather than reading a book about such an important topic. And perhaps that can be contributed to the detached style in which the author presented the story...I'm not sure one way or the other. I didn't think this was a BAD audiobook, but I wanted a little more emotion than I got.

I highly, HIGHLY recommend the movie. Even though there are creative licenses taken with some of the characters and timeline, it's a wonderful story full of heart and emotion and I feel like it does justice to these smart, amazing women.