Received as an ARC.

I wanted a book about space.

I got homophobia. The author praised Webb’s crusade to get gay men out of the federal government. It was praised and not condemned.

I got sexism. A married inventor pair was described by the author as Mr.XXX and his wife. Minimizing the contribution of the woman in the pair. This happened again when they were reintroduced.

I got abalism. An astronaut in the program was disqualified due to dyslexia. The entire paragraph was gross but specifically he was called “broken” and “unlucky.”

The narrative was scattered and weirdly put together and overall I wasn’t enjoying it - just reading to review. But I’m not putting my effort and time into a book that talks about people this way.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the read of Gemini. Jeffrey Kluger's writing style takes factual events and makes them read like fiction. A brilliant, captivating read.

It’s a brilliant and essential tribute to the backbone of the space race, and I genuinely enjoyed reading it.

So I was offered this book by the publisher, and it wasn't something I would normally choose to read. As someone who grew up in the shadows of the Johnson Space Center down here in Houston, you would think that I would love the space program, but I actually was never a fan of it. But I did enjoy going to Space Center Houston as a kid; it was fun and interesting. I've never been a huge fan of space travel itself, and I've never felt the importance of the program.
But when I was offered this book, I was curious. I don't think I've ever heard of the Gemini program, so that was definitely something I was curious about. I recognized some of the astronauts names, but not all of them. So when I started reading the book, I found it to be incredibly enjoyable and interesting. The author really takes you deep into the entire story of Gemini all the way up through Apollo. It talks about the whole space program from the beginning to the end of the Apollo program, right as we were going to walk on the moon. I I felt like this book read almost more like fiction than non fiction, because it had a really great, smooth flow. It was very detailed, and you could tell the author was very passionate about the subject, the people, whom you could really tell their personalities by the way they were written . The way the author wrote, made the book more emotional and more intense that way. While I'm still not a fan of the space program, and probably never will be, I genuinely enjoyed this book. It was just so well researched and well written that it really made you feel connected to the astronauts who first championed this program and took these chances and put their lives on the line for something that they believed so strongly in. I definitely recommend this book to people who love the space program, but I recommend it as well to people like me, people who aren't aren't space fans, but maybe you're curious about history. This is definitely a really, really good read. I received an advance copy in return for my honest review.

What an amazing book! I've always been fascinated with NASA and astronauts. The author provided the historical background regarding the often-forgotten achievements of Gemini. Jeffrey Kluger's writing provided facts, but also some humorous situations that kept the book even-keeled. I visited NASA this past May and I'm always in awe of all of the men and women who made space travel possible.

This is the first book that I've read by this author but it won't be the last!

I was provided a complimentary copy of the book from St. Martin's Press via Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A very thrilling story the people and the technology development needed to make it to the moon. Jeffrey Kluger writes as if this is an adventure novel, well researched and entertaining to read.

I devoured this book! When my son was going through his physics and astronomy stage I read Kluger's Apollo 8--another winner--and this was every bit as absorbing, with its share of thrilling and moving moments.

Kluger goes in depth on the missions between Mercury and Apollo, as well as how Kennedy Space Center came to be. Having recently visited Cape Canaveral, I was sorry I hadn't read this beforehand. Next time I am definitely shelling out for the big tour.

4 stars. What an utterly fascinating book. I loved every page and learned so much. This is a must-read for everyone.

When readers ask me for a book with straight facts, some insight into the historical participants that were not very well known, a good chronology, nondragging, great pacing that almost reads a sci-fi/suspense thrilling book about Space Race/NASA progress and history, I recommend this author.
Easy to read and understand, I loved some of the previous titles. After watching the satirical almost dark comedy show (Space Force) I've noticed that the show had a lot of research done (now reading this book I realize that some of the absurd comical but also sad moments drew from reality/history) and inspiration taken from the previous 60s-ish programs so I was curious to the leading missions (many terrible moments led to progress, shouldn't be forgotten) of the Gemini program. This makes a perfect read for STEM readers/enthusiasts (YA up) and perfect Father (family) Day gifts.

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book! Everyone always talks about Mercury and Apollo, but Gemini tends to get lost in the shuffle, even though it was the real testing ground for everything we needed to get to the Moon. Rendezvous, docking, long duration spaceflights... Gemini was where astronauts learned how to do all that.

Kluger does a great job balancing the technical side of things with humor and storytelling. The early chapters dive into the Mercury program and even trace the Redstone rockets back to their roots as V-2s, which is wild. Once we hit Gemini, the pace picks up, and Kluger brings the missions to life with funny, sometimes tense anecdotes (like the crash test dummies leaving astronaut shaped holes in the ground; grim but somehow still hilarious).

What I really loved was how Kluger captured the personalities of the astronauts. Their blunt, dry back and forth with ground control was both funny and emotional. These were real people risking their lives to figure out what worked in space, and what didn’t.

If you’re a space nerd, you’ll get a kick out of this. If you’re not, you’ll still walk away with a much better understanding of how we actually made it to the Moon. Gemini might’ve been the "middle child" of NASA’s early programs, but this book proves it deserves just as much attention.

Highly recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley, Jeffrey Kluger, and St. Martin’s Press for the eARC of this book.

Apollo wouldn’t have happened without the learning phase of the Gemini program. Gemini allowed American astronauts to achieve rendezvous, docking, and long-duration space flights.
After technical prose on the mechanical aspects, the author’s humorous writing style is appreciated: when dummy astronauts’ parachute lines fouled, they left an astronaut-shaped hole in the ground.
Before getting into Gemini, the Mercury program is explored, everything from the Redstone rockets that propelled them into space being the offspring of the V-2 rockets that brought England to its knees, to the astronauts.
Space fans will appreciate this history of ten significant space missions.

First, I want to thank both NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC of Jeffrey Kluger’s gripping book Gemini: Stepping Stone to the Moon, the Untold Story. From intro to epilogue I was entertained with stories of bravery and mystery to personality traits and well timed humor.

Perhaps Kluger’s greatest strength is his ability to share individual astronauts’ quirks, both positive and negative, that attach the reader to the man performing life threatening experimentation in space. The curt comms between astronaut to ground crew are often humorous, poignant and powerful.

Structurally, I enjoyed learning more about the oft overlooked Gemini program and missions in their natural progression. So aptly titled stepping stone that it be, I will be going full space nerd and continuing straight into the Apollo programs for my next read. Great book. I have been sharing informational nuggets from it for days now.

Jeffrey Kluger’s Gemini: Stepping Stone to the Moon tells the exciting and often forgotten story of NASA’s Gemini program. Before astronauts walked on the Moon, Gemini helped test the tools and skills needed to get there. Kluger writes in a clear and lively way, making the science and space missions easy to follow. He shares stories about the astronauts and the challenges they faced, showing how important this step was in space history. This book is great for anyone who loves space and wants to learn more about how we got to the Moon.

The title gives away the limitations of the storytelling of the book as the Gemini program was a “stepping stone”—and even in the author’s work here is confined to being a mere step toward the moon. The author does a beautiful job of laying out the key characters of the Gemini missions both on the ground and in space. The missions are told with a depth of detail without being exhaustive or boring. More depth into the characters of Gemini early in the book rather than so much insight into the prior Mercury missions would have been a greater justice to one of the author’s primary themes: the Gemini success has been severely undersold in history. In the end this is a fantastic book on America’s space journey with fair treatment to the heroes that made it happen.

Both the Mercury project and the Apollo program live on in memory as the key stepping stones to the moon, but between the two was the Gemini project with its 19 launches that bridged the gap between "we got a man to orbit the Earth!" and "we sent men to the moon with a lander, separated while orbiting, landed on the moon, explored, took off from the moon, docked with the orbiting spaceship, and flew back to the Earth".

The Gemini project accounted for 19 launches, with 10 crewed missions, as NASA and its many contractors figured out an endless parade of engineering challenges, from seat design to batteries, landing control systems to docking with another vessel in space, space walks, and so much more.

There were successes and failures, even life-threatening dangers. The project tragically lost two of its astronauts when Elliot See and Charles Bassett crashed their fighter jet into a McDonnell Aircraft building near the St. Louis Airport while attempting to land during terrible weather. Most of the Gemini astronauts went on to become part of the Apollo program too, including Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Pete Conrad, Jim Lovell, Frank Borman, and Mike Collins.

With all of this history, however, there's just not much available about the Gemini project and its many milestones in the Space Race. Enter "Gemini" from author and long-time NASA aficionado Jeffrey Kluger. If you're a space nut like me - I've been fascinated by NASA for decades - you'll love the details and information about obstacles encountered and overcome. Even the most casual readers will find Kluger's breezy style and superb research result in an eminently readable book. Highly recommended.

Jeffrey Kluger describes the Gemini (pronounced GEM-in-EE, if you're in the know) program as the unwanted, unloved middle child of the space program, without the glamour of Mercury or the drama of Apollo. His self-appointed role is to drag the two-man missions back into the spotlight, and he succeeds in this capable and effective retelling. GEMINI is an effective bookend to Andrew Chaikin's A MAN ON THE MOON; both of them are compelling reads about overcoming the difficulties of engineering and the perils of space exploration. Highly recommended.

Another great history of the US Space Program by historian Jeffrey Kluger. The often overlooked Project Gemini is forgotten between Project Mercury and Project Apollo, but without it the steps need to reach the moon would have been unproven. Gemini shares the history of the missing piece of the journey to the Lunar surface and details many firsts of the Space Program including spacewalks, longer space missions and docking in orbit. Highly Recommended!

I am a bit of a space nerd, so this book was right up my alley. Kluger takes a look at the Gemini program, which he makes a case is the sadly overlooked sibling between the Mercury and Apollo programs. It was interesting to read about the people that shaped the space program, some of whom are famous and some who aren't. Kluger does a great job of putting these events in their historical context while also showing the feeling of urgency and excitement around the space program.

It’s a rare book that can have me holding my breath for a tense moment. Al Michaels’ recount of the Miracle on Ice is the last one I can recall. Even when I know the outcome - like Apollo 13 (I recently found a copy of Mr. Kluger’s <i>Lost Moon</i>, now on my “Space shelf”, but haven’t gotten to it yet. Must remedy that.) - sometimes an author can write something in a compelling way that… well, grabs me. And the Introduction did just that, with Gene Cernan’s spacewalk. . Then it settles down to a fine accounting of the oft overlooked but critical program with the NASA pronounced name of Gem-in-ee.

I eat this stuff up. I grew up in this era and I was two months shy of five when the Cernan spacewalk happened and I remember listening to the coverage of it with my father (he recorded it, a couple of other Gemini missions and definitely the moon landing on reel to reel tape - no video recording at home back then!) Yes, I remember it. I still had a hard time keeping the NASA pronunciation in my head, as opposed to the astrological. (In Latin, it should probably be ghemenee.)

Mr. Kluger actually covers the entire 1960s space programs, Mercury in somewhat less (but still full enough) detail than the subject, and throws in an epilogue of Apollo flights. I liked getting to know more about the astronauts (and administrators). Their peccadilloes and their senses of humor.

Gus Grissom: “What, the journalist wanted to know, would be the most dangerous part of the mission? Grissom regarded him the way he'd regard a fly that had gotten through the screen door of his Houston home and was buzzing peskily around his head.
‘The part between liftoff and landing,’ he responded.”

Mr. Kluger’s storytelling is engaging and as noted above, prompts me to read more from my TBR space shelf. I appreciate getting an advance review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

For NetGalley: I am not yet a fan of the NetGalley reader. Like the not preferred Kindle, it takes too many steps to make a note (drag to highlight, tap “highlight”, tap on the note icon, tap *again* to bring up the keyboard.) And there is no way to export the notes. Swiping from too far left trying to go back a page pops me out of the book.