Fighting for Space
Two Pilots and Their Historic Battle for Female Spaceflight
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Narrated by:
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Amy Shira Teitel
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By:
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Amy Shira Teitel
About this listen
Spaceflight historian Amy Shira Teitel tells the riveting story of the female pilots who each dreamed of being the first American woman in space.
When the space age dawned in the late 1950s, Jackie Cochran held more propeller and jet flying records than any pilot of the 20th century - man or woman. She had led the Women's Auxiliary Service Pilots during the Second World War, was the first woman to break the sound barrier, ran her own luxury cosmetics company, and counted multiple presidents among her personal friends. She was more qualified than any woman in the world to make the leap from atmosphere to orbit. Yet it was Jerrie Cobb, 25 years Jackie's junior and a record-holding pilot in her own right, who finagled her way into taking the same medical tests as the Mercury astronauts. The prospect of flying in space quickly became her obsession.
While the American and international media spun the shocking story of a "woman astronaut" program, Jackie and Jerrie struggled to gain control of the narrative, each hoping to turn the rumored program into their own ideal reality - an issue that ultimately went all the way to Congress.
This dual biography of audacious trailblazers Jackie Cochran and Jerrie Cobb presents these fascinating and fearless women in all their glory and grit, using their stories as guides through the shifting social, political, and technical landscape of the time.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2020 Amy Shira Teitel (P)2020 Grand Central PublishingListeners also enjoyed...
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Critic reviews
"In this smart, fun, compelling, and deeply researched book, Teitel tells the tale of Jackie Cochran and Jerrie Cobb, who scrapped with each other and, more important, with a blinkered, male-dominated space agency, for their chance to be among the first humans to leave the planet. It's a story of ambition, talent, gender equality, and of a media frenzy that seems more 21st century than 1950s. Teitel's prose is as infectious as the space-history videos that have made her a YouTube sensation, and she has picked a story that must have been a delight to write. It's certainly a delight to read." (Jeff Kluger, author of Apollo 8 and coauthor of Apollo 13 with Jim Lovell)
"History is often not as simple as it seems. In the case of Jackie Cochran and Jerrie Cobb, this book offers a revealing insight on two characters we thought we knew but didn't. From different generations and with profoundly different but equally dogged motivations, these two pilots crossed paths and fought battles in the new world of women pushing for a place in the air, and perhaps even in space. Amy Shira Teitel digs beneath the stories to reveal motivations that are not always as straightforward and admirable as other accounts suggest. A wealth of original research reminds us that people are complex, and sometimes it is those complexities that allow them to get as far as they do in the pursuit of enormous goals - or hold them back." (Francis French, author of In the Shadow of the Moon)
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Hidden Figures
- The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race
- By: Margot Lee Shetterly
- Narrated by: Robin Miles
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Before John Glenn orbited the Earth or Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, a group of dedicated female mathematicians known as "human computers" used pencils, slide rules, and adding machines to calculate the numbers that would launch rockets and astronauts into space. Among these problem solvers were a group of exceptionally talented African American women, some of the brightest minds of their generation.
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Great Story of a History Obscured
- By Cynthia on 09-18-16
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Sally Ride
- America's First Woman in Space
- By: Lynn Sherr
- Narrated by: Pam Ward
- Length: 13 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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A member of the first astronaut class to include women, NASA chose her for the seventh shuttle mission, inspiring several generations of women. After a second flight, Ride served on the panels investigating the Challenger explosion and the Columbia disintegration that killed all aboard. In both instances, she faulted NASA's rush to meet mission deadlines and its organizational failures. She also cofounded a company promoting science and education for children, especially girls.
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Captivating
- By Jean on 06-12-14
By: Lynn Sherr
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Beyond
- The Astonishing Story of the First Human to Leave Our Planet and Journey into Space
- By: Stephen Walker
- Narrated by: David Rintoul
- Length: 15 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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Travelling at almost 18,000 miles per hour - 10 times faster than a rifle bullet - Yuri Gagarin circles the globe in just 106 minutes. From his windows, he sees the Earth as nobody has before, crossing a sunset and a sunrise, crossing oceans and continents, witnessing its beauty and its fragility. While his launch begins in total secrecy, within hours of his landing, he has become a world celebrity - the first human to leave the planet. Beyond tells the thrilling story behind that epic flight on its 60th anniversary.
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A remarkable story on many levels
- By Dipam on 03-22-22
By: Stephen Walker
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The Dream Machine
- The Untold History of the Notorious V-22 Osprey
- By: Richard Whittle
- Narrated by: Kevin Foley
- Length: 18 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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When the Marines decided to buy a helicopter-airplane hybrid "tiltrotor" called the V-22 Osprey, they saw it as their dream machine. The tiltrotor was the aviation equivalent of finding the Northwest Passage: an aircraft able to take off, land, and hover with the agility of a helicopter yet fly as fast and as far as an airplane. Many predicted it would reshape civilian aviation. The Marines saw it as key to their very survival. Opponents called it one of the worst boondoggles in Pentagon history.
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Innovation runs into government
- By Cx30 on 09-25-10
By: Richard Whittle
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A Brotherhood of Spies
- The U-2 and the CIA's Secret War
- By: Monte Reel
- Narrated by: Paul Michael
- Length: 14 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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On May 1, 1960, an American U-2 spy plane was shot down over the Soviet Union just weeks before a peace summit between the two nations. The CIA concocted a cover story for President Eisenhower to deliver, assuring him that no one could have survived a fall from that altitude. But against all odds, pilot Francis Gary Powers emerged from the wreckage and was seized by the KGB. Award-winning journalist Monte Reel reveals how the U-2 spy program, principally devised by four men working in secret, upended the Cold War and carved a new mission for the CIA.
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Lessons Learned
- By Jim on 12-13-18
By: Monte Reel
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Sully
- My Search for What Really Matters
- By: Chesley B. Sullenberger, Jeffrey Zaslow
- Narrated by: Michael McConnohie, Chesley B. Sullenberger
- Length: 8 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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On January 15, 2009, the world witnessed a remarkable emergency landing when Captain "Sully" Sullenberger skillfully glided US Airways flight 1549 onto the Hudson River, saving the lives of all 155 passengers and crew. His cool actions not only averted tragedy but made him a hero and an inspiration worldwide. His story is now a major motion picture from director/producer Clint Eastwood and starring Tom Hanks, Laura Linney, and Aaron Eckhart.
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Really Dull.
- By Nick on 09-14-16
By: Chesley B. Sullenberger, and others
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The Flight of the Century: Charles Lindbergh and the Rise of American Aviation
- Oxford University Press: Pivotal Moments in US History
- By: Thomas Kessner
- Narrated by: Bob McGraw
- Length: 11 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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In late May 1927 an inexperienced and unassuming 25-year-old Air Mail pilot from rural Minnesota stunned the world by making the first non-stop transatlantic flight. A spectacular feat of individual daring and collective technological accomplishment, Charles Lindbergh's flight from New York to Paris ushered in America's age of commercial aviation.
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Flawed but Worthwhile
- By Ray Daniels on 11-11-22
By: Thomas Kessner
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Hughes: The Private Diaries, Memos and Letters
- The Definitive Biography of the First American Billionaire
- By: Richard Hack
- Narrated by: Dan Cashman
- Length: 17 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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Howard Hughes was a true American original: legendary lover, record-setting aviator, award-winning film producer, talented inventor, ultimate eccentric, and, for much of his lifetime, the richest man in the United States. His desire for privacy was so fierce and his isolation so complete that even now, 25 years after his death, inaccurate stories continue to circulate, and many have been published as fact. Hughes explodes the illusion of his life and exposes the man behind the myth. He was a playboy whose sexual exploits with Hollywood stars were legendary.
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GOOD READ
- By Randall on 04-25-09
By: Richard Hack
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Who Was Amelia Earhart?
- By: Kate Boehm Jerome
- Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
- Length: 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Amelia Earhart was a woman of many "firsts." In 1932, she became the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. In 1935, she also became the first woman to fly across the Pacific. From her early years to her mysterious 1937 disappearance while attempting a flight around the world, listeners will find Amelia Earhart's life a fascinating story.
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Who was Amelia
- By A. M. on 04-13-23
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Fly Girls
- How Five Daring Women Defied All Odds and Made Aviation History
- By: Keith O'Brien
- Narrated by: Erin Bennett
- Length: 12 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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Between the world wars, no sport was more popular, or more dangerous, than airplane racing. Thousands of fans flocked to multi-day events, and cities vied with one another to host them. The pilots themselves were hailed as dashing heroes who cheerfully stared death in the face. Fly Girls recounts how a cadre of women banded together to break the original glass ceiling: the entrenched prejudice that conspired to keep them out of the sky.
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For women, and dads
- By Cecilia Avanelle on 08-08-18
By: Keith O'Brien
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Soaring to Glory
- A Tuskegee Airman's Firsthand Account of World War II
- By: Philip Handleman, Lt. Col. Harry T. Stewart Jr.
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 7 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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He had to sit in a segregated rail car on the journey to army basic training in Mississippi in 1943. But two years later, the 20-year-old African American from New York was at the controls of a P-51, prowling for Luftwaffe aircraft at 5,000 feet over the Austrian countryside. This is the remarkable true story of Lt. Col. Harry Stewart Jr., one of the last surviving Tuskegee Airmen of World War II. Award-winning aviation writer Philip Handleman re-creates the harrowing action and heart-pounding drama of Stewart's combat missions....
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Disappointed these extraordinary Men...
- By Damian on 04-20-20
By: Philip Handleman, and others
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LeMay
- By: Warren Kozak
- Narrated by: Grainger Hines
- Length: 13 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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The firebombing of Tokyo. Strategic Air Command. John F. Kennedy. Dr. Strangelove. George Wallace. All of these have one man in common—General Curtis LeMay, who remains as enigmatic and controversial as he was in life. Until now. Warren Kozak traces the trajectory of America’s most infamous general, from his troubled background and heroic service in Europe to his firebombing of Tokyo, guardianship of the U.S. nuclear arsenal in the Cold War, frustrated career in government, and short-lived political run.
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Definition.....Leader.....General Curtis Le May
- By Nj-Mike on 01-04-15
By: Warren Kozak
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Rocket Men
- The Daring Odyssey of Apollo 8 and the Astronauts Who Made Man's First Journey to the Moon
- By: Robert Kurson
- Narrated by: Ray Porter, Robert Kurson
- Length: 12 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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By August 1968, the American space program was in danger of failing in its two most important objectives: to land a man on the moon by President Kennedy's end-of-decade deadline and to triumph over the Soviets in space. With its back against the wall, NASA made an almost unimaginable leap: It would scrap its usual methodical approach and risk everything on a sudden launch, sending the first men in history to the moon - in just four months.
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The Men Who Saved 1968
- By Gillian on 04-04-18
By: Robert Kurson
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Boyd
- The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War
- By: Robert Coram
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 19 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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John Boyd may be the most remarkable unsung hero in all of American military history. Some remember him as the greatest US fighter pilot ever - the man who, in simulated air-to-air combat, defeated every challenger in less than 40 seconds. Some recall him as the father of our country's most legendary fighter aircraft - the F-15 and F-16. Still, others think of Boyd as the most influential military theorist since Sun Tzu. They know only half the story.
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Stick With It if You Want a Rare Gem
- By Michael Richards on 08-30-16
By: Robert Coram
What listeners say about Fighting for Space
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Justin
- 01-04-22
Amy's Voice is the icing in the cake
Great listen. Hearing Amy narrate her own writing makes the story of these amazing woman that much more visceral.
Can't wait for another book (I hope).
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- Peter P
- 12-26-20
An insightful look into aviation history
Well researched and narrated. Provided a balanced perspective on the challenges of early aviation for women of that era.
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- Patrick K
- 05-17-23
Amazing story from History
this was a great story about passionate people chasing their dreams, the struggles they had, and the different approaches people took to try and make a difference in the world.
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- WireKAT
- 05-25-21
Great story that I never knew.
Amy does a fabulous job. Her research is amazing but her narration brings this story to life.
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- Amazon Customer
- 12-30-21
Brilliant!
A crucial piece of history, lovingly brought to life. Amy does a magnificent job both as writer and narrator.
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- anna sissy doll *curtsey*
- 09-02-21
Exciting, fresh and inspiring
This book makes you want to fly. :)
These women just wanted to fly. Independent of anyone telling them they should, or should not. It was inside them and they moved heaven and Earth to make it happen.
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- Anonymous User
- 10-23-20
Interesting history lesson with great perfomance
Lovely dive into mid XX century history with unique point of view on the ongoing space race. Plot a bit jumpy between the characters but OK. Kudos to the amount of digging, which led to the book. Really loved the narration!
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- James
- 04-17-20
Amazing story, expertly told.
I waited for months for this book to be released, and it didn't disappoint! ana amazing tale of the fortitude and determination of the first women to navigate the skies.
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- Dan Edwards
- 03-02-20
Wonderful characters from history told in a compelling way.
Using sources from the characters and national archives the author tells a wonderful story about women challenging the world of aviation and space in a era when the world was wanting to return to traditional family values after World War Two. These people are not perfect, but they are fascinating.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Edwin L
- 03-15-20
Heroic Women
Amy does a great job bringing these Aviation’s Heroes to light, those women broke the glass ceilings, sad to think they would have been great Astronaut like the ones following on their wings!
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2 people found this helpful