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Kevin Cook
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The Burning Blue: The Untold Story of Christa McAuliffe and NASA's Challenger Disaster Kindle Edition

by Kevin Cook (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 361 ratings
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Winner of the American Astronautical Society's 2021 Eugene M. Emme Award

The untold story of a national trauma—NASA’s Challenger explosion—and what really happened to America’s Teacher in Space, illuminating the tragic cost of humanity setting its sight on the stars

You’ve seen the pictures. You know what happened. Or do you?

On January 28, 1986, NASA’s space shuttle Challenger exploded after blasting off from Cape Canaveral. Christa McAuliffe, America’s “Teacher in Space,” was instantly killed, along with the other six members of the mission. At least that's what most of us remember.

Kevin Cook tells us what really happened on that ill-fated, unforgettable day. He traces the pressures—leading from NASA to the White House—that triggered the fatal order to launch on an ice-cold Florida morning. Cook takes readers inside the shuttle for the agonizing minutes after the explosion, which the astronauts did indeed survive. He uncovers the errors and corner-cutting that led an overconfident space agency to launch a crew that had no chance to escape.

But this is more than a corrective to a now-dimming memory. Centering on McAuliffe, a charmingly down-to-earth civilian on the cusp of history, The Burning Blue animates a colorful cast of characters: a pair of red-hot flyers at the shuttle's controls, the second female and first Jewish astronaut, the second Black astronaut, and the first Asian American and Buddhist in space. Drawing vivid portraits of Christa and the astronauts, Cook makes readers forget the fate they're hurtling toward. With drama, immediacy, and shocking surprises, he reveals the human price the Challenger crew and America paid for politics, capital-P Progress, and the national dream of "reaching for the stars."

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  1. Print length
    283 pages
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  5. Publication date
    June 8, 2021
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From the Publisher

The Burning Blue Kevin Cook

The Burning Blue Kevin Cook Kirkus Review blurb

The Burning Blue Kevin Cook USA Today

The Burning Blue Kevin Cook Publishers Weekly blurb

Editorial Reviews

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USA Today: The Best Books of 2021 So Far
Literary Hub: 20 Hot New Books Coming Out This Week


Praise for The Burning Blue

“Gripping…compact and suspenseful…Cook offers a detailed, heartrending, and frequently terrifying accounting of what it must have felt like to be part of the Challenger crew that day.”
―The Washington Post

“Cook’s crisply crafted journalism and perceptive take on the personalities that shaped the Challenger mission―along with NASA’s struggles and failures―make for a riveting narrative and complex cross-weave of themes. Celebrity, bureaucracy, political will, industrial design, and unthinkable doom: the ingredients that propel this book like the liquid hydrogen and oxygen that fueled Challenger’s rocketry are superbly balanced in Cook’s telling.”
―USA Today

“A fast-paced chronicle of the horrific event and its aftermath…a vivid, thoroughly researched space history.”
―Kirkus Reviews

“Using a plethora of primary and secondary sources, including personal interviews and shuttle operation manuals, Cook...personalizes a pivotal moment in the history of NASA, space exploration, and the U.S. Readers will find something new even if they are familiar with the Challenger disaster.”
―Library Journal

“Cook ramps up tension with well-selected vignettes…an informative overview of a preventable tragedy that looms large...”
―Publishers Weekly

About the Author

Kevin Cook is the author of over ten books, including The Burning Blue, Ten Innings at Wrigley, and Kitty Genovese. He has written for the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, GQ, Smithsonian, and many other publications and has often appeared on CNN, NPR, and Fox News. An Indiana native, he lives in Northampton, Massachusetts.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08L1QDF2D
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Henry Holt and Co. (June 8, 2021)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 8, 2021
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 48325 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 283 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 361 ratings

About the author

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Kevin Cook

Kevin Cook

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The award-winning author of Tommy's Honor has written ten books including Titanic Thompson, Kitty Genovese, Ten Innings at Wrigley, and The Burning Blue: The Untold Story of Christa McAuliffe and NASA's Challenger Disaster.

Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
361 global ratings
Very interesting and informative!
4 Stars
Very interesting and informative!
I really found this book so interesting. I remember The Challenger Disaster very well. It's definitely something that you can never forget. I remember I was in my fourth grade class and we were watching it live on TV. I remember the heartbreak everyone felt watching it. The teachers just having tears in their eyes...in complete shock!The author did an amazing job introducing Christa McAuliffe and the crew members to the reader. Getting to know who they were on a more personal level. Then learning about the purpose of this mission, and the Teacher in Space project. I really enjoyed reading this now, because I was so young that I never really knew the details of this tragedy. You also read information about the aftermath of the disaster, the recovery of the bodies and shuttle, and the politics of it, which maybe that part I could've done without. All in all, I thought it was well written and we'll researched.
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Top reviews from the United States

Jake
5.0 out of 5 stars You think you know it all? ? Think again and read this!
Reviewed in the United States on March 6, 2022
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You think you know everything you need to know about the Challenger disaster?
Think again. In this remarkably well written and detail drive book, Cook tells us tons of fascinating details we have not known before.
He really brings the crew and their families to life. As good as he is at painting the human plus and minus parts of the people, Christa is the only slightly weak point. There are no human foibles in her, which is hard to believe. But it doesn't detract from what a wonderful person she was and why this story is riveting.
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Jerilyn Schultz
5.0 out of 5 stars Informative book about this tragedy.
Reviewed in the United States on February 14, 2022
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I always wanted to know more about Christa McAuliffe and what actually happened when the Challenger exploded. I remember that day like yesterday, and I was excited when this book came out. It was interesting and informative and took me back to that tragedy as well as the recovery.
I purchased the book used. It came within 2-3 days and was in excellent condition.
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William R Stoyer
4.0 out of 5 stars Solid overview that focuses more on the astronauts than the physical cause of the disaster
Reviewed in the United States on June 29, 2021
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Up front I want to say this book is not sensationalist in any way. The chapter which discusses what the crew may have experienced after the break-up is based on a forensic examination of the crew cabin and their remains, and is pulled from reliable sources such as Joe Kerwin's report to NASA back in 1986. There are pages on the internet which claim to have transcripts from the crew after NASA lost contact, which is 100% false, but this book in no way gives credence to that conspiracy. Yes there is still alot of conjecture in that part but again, based on science and established evidence.
Having said that, I feel the best part is the chapter which discusses these possibilities, which is the first time I've really seen anyone delve into what the astronauts may have gone through after the vehicle broke up. Its a tough chapter to read but I think an important addition to the story. This is also the first book I've read about the disaster that really tried to explain who the astronauts were as individuals, which is another welcome addition. If you are interested in the more technical aspects of the disaster I highly recommend Al McDonald's book 𝘛𝘳𝘶𝘵𝘩, 𝘓𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘖-𝘙𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴, as well as Diane Vaughan's 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘓𝘢𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘩 𝘋𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯. The Presidential Commission Report, especially the minutes from the hearings, are also a fascinating and frustrating read. You can find them on NASA's website.
I wanted to give this 5 stars but there were a few too many factual errors, albeit minor. For example on pgs. 32-33 Wally Schirra is identified as Chief of the Astronaut Office at the time, when in fact it was John Young - who is correctly identified on pg. 207. There were at least two instances where the book seemed to indicate a shuttle when from launch to orbit in about 2 minutes, when in reality its about 8 minutes, and there were a few other examples along those lines. None of these take away from the story which is still told very well, I would have just liked to see a little more attention paid in the final edit.
9 people found this helpful
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trailgal
5.0 out of 5 stars Challenger's Final Flight
Reviewed in the United States on November 2, 2022
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Having seen the documentary Challenger: The Final Flight numerous times, I was interested in having more detailed information. This book contains much of the information given in the documentary. It is very well written and a fast paced read. It also adds more personal data on Christa and the crew. I would recommend it to anyone interested in the Challenger in particular or NASA in general.
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Susan sadler
5.0 out of 5 stars Very interesting
Reviewed in the United States on August 5, 2022
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I had watched a documentary and wanted to know a bit more. Thus was very informative and well written.
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Sandy Sbarra
5.0 out of 5 stars Well told Bio about the Teacher in Space
Reviewed in the United States on September 25, 2021
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Fast reading and entertaining story about Christa McAuliffe's journey in life, as an astronaut, and tragic end. Great inside look at the rigors of space travel and many other astronauts in the space shuttle program as well as why NASA's negligence led directly to the Challenger explosion
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Coastal Shutterbug
5.0 out of 5 stars A Terrific Read!
Reviewed in the United States on August 30, 2022
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I liked it so much that I am ordering one for my closest friend and will order for more friends soon!
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Wentletrap
4.0 out of 5 stars What I learned from this book
Reviewed in the United States on June 28, 2021
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What I learned from this book: 1. This should never of happened. The powers that be at NASA were warned by the O-ring engineers that it was too cold and that the O-rings might fail. For stupid political reasons, the officials at NASA decided to launch anyway. In my opinion, these people committed murder and should’ve been held accountable and put in jail. 2. NASA will lie to cover their mistakes. They told multiple lies about this incident and I’m sure the same is true of the Columbia disaster. 3. So much was made about the “teacher in space” that the other six members of the crew were generally overlooked. All of them were brilliant and talented in other areas. This was a tragedy that involved more than the teacher. Many families and friends suffered as well. 4. One of NASA’s lies was that the crew was killed in the explosion. It is now known that those poor people were alive possibly as long as 2 to 3 minutes after the explosion and knew what was death was imminent. Well written and interesting but so so sad. I remember when this happened and how many millions of times the media showed the film showing the explosion. This was just torture for the families and friends of the crew. I don’t know how any astronaut could trust NASA after this incident.
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Top reviews from other countries

Poppy21
3.0 out of 5 stars Not what I thought
Reviewed in Canada on May 17, 2023
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I was lead to believe this was about what happened. But the majority of book was about the people don’t get me wrong it was fascinating and made it more about the human loss than the shuttle I was expecting a more detail into what went wrong and why.

This approach though all I could think about was all those children tuned in to watch it.
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Phil Caldwell
5.0 out of 5 stars Really good read.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 27, 2021
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I very rarely read books however when I saw this I purchased it. It gives you an insight into the Teacher in Space program aboard the Space Shuttle in the late 1970's-1980's.

The book is primarily about the Teacher in Space program winner, Christa McAuliffe, the program itself and the six astronauts who died with her when Space Shuttle Challenger exploded on lift off in 1986.

I won't go into details as it will spoil your reading of it, but from a person who doesn't like books in general, I loved this book.
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Oxford Blues
5.0 out of 5 stars Very interesting and engaging read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 29, 2021
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Though the focus is on Christine McAuliffe, the book explores far more, and covers the important aspects of the shuttle programme in general, which leads up to the fateful day, its aftermath and the investigation. Author writes in a pacey and entertaining way, without being sensationalist or hagiographic. Just the right amount of detail to keep you interested, but not so much as to bog it down. Great read.
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Railway Mike
4.0 out of 5 stars A moving biography.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 4, 2023
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An interesting background biography with some technical background into the accident.
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jonny
5.0 out of 5 stars Harrowing
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 23, 2022
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A shocking account of the loss of life that resulted after a Shuttle launch that was deemed risky.
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