Matthew Botos

Mike Mullane’s Riding Rockets: The Outrageous Tales of a Space Shuttle Astronaut is a book that actually does live up to its billing: a revealing, unfliching, often hilarious look at the life of a shuttle astronaut. He only occasionally delves into the technology of the program, instead focusing on much more interesting interpersonal relationships. The contrasts between military and civilian astronauts, their struggles with NASA management, and the influence of early political correctness are all intriguing. Against this backdrop, he traces the ups and downs of astronaut life from mission assignments to the unbelievably complicated process of using the space toilet.