Fly High, John Glenn: The Story of an American Hero

This is a lovely picture book biography about the astronaut John Glenn. His story starts when he was just a little boy living in Ohio staring out the windows of his bedroom dreaming of flying. After his father took him on a ride in an airplane, John was hooked on flying. As he grew older he got interested in all kinds of subjects and flying eventually had to take a backseat because of expenses, but his interest in it never went away. During college, he found his way into a new program that paid him to fly. Later he joined the military and became a fighter pilot in World War II. John then married his high school sweetheart who had always supported his dreams. John went on many missions before he found his way into NASA. After two years of training, he was one of the seven to qualify for the space mission Friendship 7. During this dangerous mission, his heat shield came loose, and John had to maneuver the space ship himself to ensure a safe landing. Luckily he made it and got reunited with his family. John became the first American to orbit Earth three times, he continued to serve his country through politics and also became the oldest person in space at seventy-seven in 1998 aboard the Discovery mission. I enjoyed reading this book about space and astronauts. I find these stories incredibly inspiring; the illustrations are very realistic and beautiful. I would recommend this book for ages six and up. Although the text is very detailed and long, its a really fun book.