{"product_id":"the-astronaut-maker-michael-cassutt-9781613737002","title":"The Astronaut Maker: How One Mysterious Engineer Ran Human Spaceflight for a Generation","description":"One of the most elusive and controversial figures in NASA's history, George W. S. Abbey was called \"the Dark Lord,\" \"the Godfather,\" and \"UNO\"--short for unidentified NASA official. He was said to be secretive, despotic, a Space Age Machiavelli. Yet Abbey had more influence on human spaceflight than almost anyone in history. His story has never been told--until now. \u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e The Astronaut Maker\u003c\/i\u003e takes readers inside NASA to learn the real story of how Abbey rose to power, from young pilot and wannabe astronaut to engineer, bureaucrat, and finally director of the Johnson Space Center. During a thirty-seven-year career, mostly out of the spotlight, he oversaw the selection of every astronaut class from 1978 to 1987, deciding who got to fly and when. He was with the Apollo 1 astronauts the night before the fatal fire in January 1967. He was in mission control the night of the Apollo 13 accident and organized the recovery effort. Abbey also led NASA's recruitment of women and minorities as space shuttle astronauts and was responsible for hiring Sally Ride. \u003cbr\u003e Written by Michael Cassutt, the coauthor of the acclaimed astronaut memoirs \u003ci\u003eDEKE!\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eWe Have Capture, \u003c\/i\u003e and informed by countless hours of interviews with Abbey and his family, friends, adversaries, and former colleagues, \u003ci\u003eThe Astronaut Maker \u003c\/i\u003eis the ultimate insider's account of ambition and power politics at NASA.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Michael Cassutt\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1613737009\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781613737002\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Chicago Review Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 08\/15\/2018\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 480\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.98lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.20h x 6.20w x 2.00d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 06\/04\/2018\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 06\/15\/2018\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 07\/01\/2018 pg. 88","brand":"Michael Cassutt","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":43939179233535,"sku":"9781613737002","price":30.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/products\/img_e67706ca-8dfc-46c0-aa09-bec7a59bb096.jpg?v=1681439966","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-astronaut-maker-michael-cassutt-9781613737002","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}