My Remarkable Journey: A Memoir

Harper Collins £20  HB

If you have seen the 2016 movie Hidden Figures, about the group of African-American women who worked as ‘human computers’ for NASA during the era of the Space Race, then you already know about Katherine Johnson. This book is her story, in her own words.

Born in rural West Virginia at the end of World War One in 1918, she died in 2020 at the age of 101. Her life spanned the Great Depression, World War Two, the Civil Rights movement, the Space Race and beyond. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama in 2015 and was given a standing ovation at the 89th Academy Awards in 2017.

Education was of paramount importance and her parents made sure she and her siblings received the best possible. A talented mathematician from childhood, she entered college at just 15.

The chapters dedicated to her work at NASA through the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo missions are fascinating and detailed. Her work put the first Americans in space, and even when the first electronic computers were introduced at NASA she had to double check their calculations.

Throughout the book Katherine Johnson is at pains to pay homage to her teachers and mentors, to her colleagues, friends and family and to those who broke through the barriers alongside her.

Her life was one of hard work, integrity, decency and dedication. It is indeed an inspiring story of a life well lived. ★★★★★

Jenny Winder is a space writer and broadcaster