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I Touch the Future: The Story of Christa McAuliffe
An account of the life, teaching career, NASA training, and impact of the woman who was selected to be the first teacher in space
- GenresNonfictionBiography
262 pages, Hardcover
First published October 12, 1986
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 28, 2019
Reading this biography was a bittersweet experience that transported me back in time. January 28, 1986, when I was young, full of dreams, and thought being an astronaut was the coolest job out of this world. Disney World's "Carousel of Progress" was turning in the Magic Kingdom, churning out a sense of accomplishment and ambition. The cold war was cold, the space race was hot. Communism was crumbling, democracy was rising, Reagan was President and middle America was a wholesome place to live. I did not anticipate how the optimism of the space program, the colloquialisms, ambitions and contours of the culture of the time would transport me to my youth.
The echos of that time that I did anticipate, such as debate about compensation of teachers, concerns about NASA spending, excitement of the Teacher in Space program, fascination with Christa McAuliffe, were drawn well by Mr. Hohler, who demonstrates a journalist's eye toward accurate reporting that illustrates stories of humanity.
This book was a requiem for Mr. Hohler, a Concord, MA neighbor of the McAuliffe's tasked with covering the adventure of the community's ascendent daughter. The assignment that began with a bright joy that overpowered concern for the McAuliffe family "one year of separation" for Christa to take the "ride of a lifetime" ended with shocking, unspeakable pain.
Mr. Hohler's book, published on time in October of 1986, was originally intended to be an account of McAuliffe's one year of astronaut work. Instead, it became a farewell to the teacher, the astronauts and the beginning of the end of the shuttle program. Ending the book with the disaster, Hohler doesn't allow Christa's spirit and optimism to be encumbered by the outcomes, for that you'll have to look elsewhere. I found myself scouring the internet to read of the investigation, the 30 year commemoration, the lives of the families left behind, and the wind down of the Shuttle program.
McAuliffe's death changed America, and it changed me. The story of an "Ordinary Jane" teacher, selected from thousands for a ride on the space shuttle was the right stuff of dreams. NASA knew it, and Christa knew it, too. I remember pouring over articles, pondering this amazing development in the life of a person who was the archetype of overcoming Americans. Not flashy, but nonetheless, full of the vibrance of the good life of middle class America. And I remember examining the photos of her husband and children, and wondering:
How could she do it?
Why did she even apply?
Would I have the courage to do such a thing?
I hoped I would.... until the explosion.
And then something changed for me in the micro, as well as for America in the macro. Still a child myself, I realized, I was willing to give up my dreams to be with the people I loved. I admired Christa, I wanted to see her soar. I loved her passion for teaching, for students, for learning, for community. But in the end, reading this account reminded me of the deepest lesson I learned following the shock of the explosion, devouring the news for months following, and later discovering the astronauts perished in the ocean coming to rest not far from the launch site... It was a painful lesson, and it has stuck with me for over 3 decades:
No dream will be worth sacrificing time and place with my family. You never know how long you have to be with them, and they are my most treasured dream.
Goodbye, Christa. After many pauses in reading, to prolong the joy of the adventure, I was finally ready to face the piercing pain of your final scene. I cried. I watched it online on video. I cried. As I relived the searing pain of the mirror shattering, I grieved for you and yours, for us Americans and ours, and even for me and mine and the brokeness we have lived in the days since you flew. I will always remember you, and I've begun praying for your family again... Godspeed...
If you would like to read about the 30 year anniversary of the Challenger disaster, see:
http://www.ibtimes.com/space-shuttle-...
The echos of that time that I did anticipate, such as debate about compensation of teachers, concerns about NASA spending, excitement of the Teacher in Space program, fascination with Christa McAuliffe, were drawn well by Mr. Hohler, who demonstrates a journalist's eye toward accurate reporting that illustrates stories of humanity.
This book was a requiem for Mr. Hohler, a Concord, MA neighbor of the McAuliffe's tasked with covering the adventure of the community's ascendent daughter. The assignment that began with a bright joy that overpowered concern for the McAuliffe family "one year of separation" for Christa to take the "ride of a lifetime" ended with shocking, unspeakable pain.
Mr. Hohler's book, published on time in October of 1986, was originally intended to be an account of McAuliffe's one year of astronaut work. Instead, it became a farewell to the teacher, the astronauts and the beginning of the end of the shuttle program. Ending the book with the disaster, Hohler doesn't allow Christa's spirit and optimism to be encumbered by the outcomes, for that you'll have to look elsewhere. I found myself scouring the internet to read of the investigation, the 30 year commemoration, the lives of the families left behind, and the wind down of the Shuttle program.
McAuliffe's death changed America, and it changed me. The story of an "Ordinary Jane" teacher, selected from thousands for a ride on the space shuttle was the right stuff of dreams. NASA knew it, and Christa knew it, too. I remember pouring over articles, pondering this amazing development in the life of a person who was the archetype of overcoming Americans. Not flashy, but nonetheless, full of the vibrance of the good life of middle class America. And I remember examining the photos of her husband and children, and wondering:
How could she do it?
Why did she even apply?
Would I have the courage to do such a thing?
I hoped I would.... until the explosion.
And then something changed for me in the micro, as well as for America in the macro. Still a child myself, I realized, I was willing to give up my dreams to be with the people I loved. I admired Christa, I wanted to see her soar. I loved her passion for teaching, for students, for learning, for community. But in the end, reading this account reminded me of the deepest lesson I learned following the shock of the explosion, devouring the news for months following, and later discovering the astronauts perished in the ocean coming to rest not far from the launch site... It was a painful lesson, and it has stuck with me for over 3 decades:
No dream will be worth sacrificing time and place with my family. You never know how long you have to be with them, and they are my most treasured dream.
Goodbye, Christa. After many pauses in reading, to prolong the joy of the adventure, I was finally ready to face the piercing pain of your final scene. I cried. I watched it online on video. I cried. As I relived the searing pain of the mirror shattering, I grieved for you and yours, for us Americans and ours, and even for me and mine and the brokeness we have lived in the days since you flew. I will always remember you, and I've begun praying for your family again... Godspeed...
If you would like to read about the 30 year anniversary of the Challenger disaster, see:
http://www.ibtimes.com/space-shuttle-...
November 26, 2017
Concord Monitor journalist Robert Hohler wrote an inspiring account of Christa McAuliffe's life in the year the Challenger tragedy happened. As a historian myself, I admire her interest in social history as a high school teacher in Concord, New Hampshire. This interest prompted her to design a class in women's history emphasizing the experiences of women not typically found in standard textbooks. I also admire the kindness with which she treated everybody from her students, to fellow teachers, to her family, to reporters. Her 37 years of life deserve to be remembered as well as her tragic death aboard Challenger, and this book reminds us of that.
March 28, 2022
great book for middle schooler
February 13, 2025
She was as wholesome as we have here in USA.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews