In a small, midwestern town, families survive but struggle. There is sadness and loss. Biases exist, and people act on them at times. This is a story about regular folks with their successes and foibles, sometimes clashing but ultimately trying to do what's right. Good guys mess up, and people learn they can be more compassionate than they thought. A warm story.
When you grow up watching Star Trek with your dad and sister, then marry a guy who also loves the show (and all its sequels), you definitely romanticize the notion of space travel. High-tech combinations of five-star hotels staffed by nerds so brilliant they're cool--what's not to love? Well, in typical Mary Roach fashion, my preconceived ideas were dashed. She dispels the myth of the sleek astronaut life and boils it down in all sorts of ways . . . from how crews are selected to the decidedly unglamorous realities of living in space, all with her signature wit. Once upon a time I fantasized about going to space. Let's just say I don't anymore.
If you've wondered why the self-proclaimed "Christians" are the meanest people in the room, this book might shed some insight on why that is. Turns out that the wackadoodle "evangelicals" (sorry about my quotes all over the place) that are so loud and proud have an agenda, and it's not anything about "loving thy neighbor as thyself" or "turn[ing] the other cheek". Nope. It's very much geared toward patriarchy, racism, sexism, etc. What a list of attributes. It was a well-cited and interesting book that made me feel a lot of big feelings. None of them Christlike, I'm afraid.
