Book Review: “Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race” by Margot Lee Shetterly

Dec 26

Håfa adai! February is Black History Month in the United States. Throughout February 2025, I posted reviews for books across various genres written by African American authors and/or depict important experiences and stories within Black history. Each book review is followed by a brief summary of Black history and Black History Month within the context of United States history. My fourth selection of February 2025 is Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race by Margot Lee Shetterly.

This book review consists of two parts: a brief summary of content followed by my personal takeaways. I may go into detail about some parts of the book, but I will leave out the greater nuance. I want to share my opinions of the book and encourage you to purchase a copy of your own.

Click on the tags at the bottom of this post to see all reviews with the same tags in the Social Sciences & History bookshelf.

Summary

Before the age of electronic computers, human computers were tasked with solving equations, cracking codes, producing Cartesian maps grids, and translating theory to application. The demand for a fighting force during both World Wars meant that it was up to women to fill the roles of computers as mathematicians, physicists, chemists, and other experts in the physical sciences. The decades following WWII turned conditional allies into rivals as the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) entered the Cold War and initiated the Space Race, a competition between nations to be the first to achieve space capabilities.

In 1958, the United States replaced the National Advisory Council for Aeronautics (NACA) with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)—moving the agency campus from Virginia to Texas—to place greater effort on making progress in the Space Race. But deeply ingrained misogyny and institutional racism in the Jim Crow era United States placed intense barriers between young Black scientists, engineers, and mathematicians and the same titles and positions offered to White experts in the same field. These barriers would also effect the United States’ ability to make progress in the race of scientific advancement. Hidden Figures follows the stories of five women who had to break through these barriers, paving the way for all future women in science in the United States, to help their country go beyond the Earth’s atmosphere.

My Thoughts on Hidden Figures: 4.75 stars

I had originally intended to post this review on Monday, 24 February 2025. Unfortunately, I was not able to finish reading Hidden Figures until mid-March. I strongly prefer to finish the books I review even though I have no intention of revealing endings, spoilers, plot twists, or excessive detail. As I say in the disclaimer of every post, I just want to share my personal thoughts and possibly encourage a reader to obtain a copy of their own (if it is a recommendable book). But most importantly, Hidden Figures tells an amazing story in Black history, American history, and human history and I did not want to forgo sharing this review because of missing a self-imposed deadline.

Hidden Figures is equal parts biography, history, and science lesson. Margot Lee Shetterly takes an intersectional approach to the experiences of Black women mathematicians to highlight the misogyny and racism they faced throughout the Jim Crow era United States. There were sections where the narrative felt dry and staccato—and it was difficult to stay focused on the discussion in those parts—but the overall writing throughout the book is an incredible display of carefully conducted research woven into compassionate storytelling.

Margot Lee Shetterly points out that the research behind Hidden Figures uncovered the tremendous secret that seemed to be the women computers behind the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Hundreds of women were employed as computers, making incredible contributions to America’s place in the Space Race. Although Hidden Figures could have been a tale of all those women, the author composes a more personal narrative by focusing on five women in particular: Dorothy Vaughan, Katherine Goble (later known as Katherine Johnson after she married her husband), Mary Jackson, Christine Darden, and Gloria Champine.

Dorothy Vaughan, Katherine Goble/Johnson, and Mary Jackson were Black women mathematicians—officially known as computers—working for NACA and then NASA. Their contributions to research and application at NACA and NASA greatly helped the United States’ achieve its goal of landing on the moon and would equate to 95 combined years of service. Christine Darden was hired as a data analyst at NASA’s Langley Research Center in 1967 and would later be the first Black woman to be promoted to the agency’s Senior Executive Service. Gloria Champine was a White woman who worked as a secretary at NASA’s Chief of Space System’s Division. She would strongly advocate for over a hundred women to be offered positions and titles equal to those offered to men at NASA.

I give Hidden Figures 4.75 out of 5 stars. Margot Lee Shetterly deftly weaves the first-hand experiences of a few Black women computers of NACA (and later NASA) with the ongoing social and geopolitical realities of the Jim Crow era United States, the Civil Rights Movement, the Cold War, and the Space Race. This book could easily be shelved with non-fiction works in the physical sciences due to the way Margot Lee Shetterly provides detailed explanations behind the specific scientific advancements and engineering breakthroughs made throughout the decades of the Cold War. I recommend Hidden Figures to anyone looking for a holistic review of the incredible social and scientific history that paved the way for a giant leap for humankind.

Dångkulo' na' saina ma'åse'! Thank you so much for reading my review of Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly.

Other Books Reviewed for Black History Month 2025:

Kindred by Octavia Butler
Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin

A Brief Summary of Black History & Black History Month in the United States

Black History Month is the first heritage month of the year celebrated in the United States. But how did this important heritage month come to be? How a community enters a nation’s historical narrative matters. The context of that introduction often sets the tone for how members of that community will be defined and treated by that nation’s leading demographic, legislation, popular media, public education, and more. For that reason, it is important to give a quick summary of the legislative history of how Africans and African Americans entered the national narrative of the United States, giving context to the significance of Black History Month.

A Quick Glance at the Legislative History of the United States of America

In 1776, thirteen British colonies in North America legally and politically separated from Great Britain to form the United States of America. The Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill of Rights (the first 10 amendments of the Constitution)—documents considered to be the foundation of the nation—rely on notions of freedom and equality as staunch opposition to the monarchy the colonies left behind. Yet the entire economy and structure of the United States in 1776 contradicted these notions, relying on the genocide and enslavement of multiple populations through practices that had been created and aggressively maintained for centuries. At the moment of its birth in 1776, the newly-formed United States of America had a lot of work to do before its reality resembled its ideologies.

In 1808, the 366 year-long Trans-Atlantic slave trade—costing the lives of over 15 million African men, women, and children—was legally ended in the United States, but illegal slave trade continued into the 1860s throughout both Union and Confederate states. On 1 January 1863, in the third year of the American Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln passed the Emancipation Proclamation stating “that all persons held as slaves… shall be free.” In 1865, the passage of the 13th Amendment formally abolished slavery in the United States. Citizenship would be granted to formerly enslaved people later with the 1866 adoption (and 1868 ratification) of the 14th Amendment*, which states that those born or naturalized in the United States would be granted citizenship. In 1870, the 15th Amendment technically “granted” voting rights to Black men (not Black women) in the aftermath of the Civil War; but legal protections against public discrimination and intimidation informed by bigotry (which prevented many Black men from exercising their right to vote, among many other things) would not be set in place until passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. In 1954, the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education ruled that it was unconstitutional to separate children in public schools on the basis of race. But the historical narrative of African Americans can be seen far beyond the legislative record of the country.

*Citizenship for Native Americans and those from United States territories/colonies was and is not granted through the 14th Amendment of the Constitution.

Creations by African American Inventors Shape Much of American Life Today

From the economic foundations of the nation, to connecting the country coast to coast and beyond, and the comforts of everyday life, the impact of inventions by African Americans are felt in almost every facet of American life today. To name a few, these inventions include: the induction telegraph system that lets trains communicate while still in motion (Granville T. Woods); touch-tone phone, fiber optic cables, portable fax, and Caller ID (Shirley Jackson, not to be mistaken for the American horror author with the same name); the original IBM personal computer and color PC monitor (co-invented by Mark Dean); the Fairchild Channel F videogame console and the first interchangeable videogame cartridge (Jerry Lawson); Shockwave (the foundation for web animation) (Lisa Gelobter); the traffic signal (Garrett Morgan); automated elevator doors (Alexander Miles); synthetic drugs to treat glaucoma (Percy Lavon Julian); the home security system (Marie Van Brittan Brown); the sanitary belt (predecessor to sanitary pads and other menstrual products for women) and much more (Mary Beatrice Davidson Kenner); refrigeration preserving things from food to medicine and donated blood (Frederick McKinley Jones); the first set of haircare products made especially for Black women’s hair (Madam C.J. Walker); synthetic rubber, peanut butter, and a lot more (George Washington Carver); the potato chip (George Crum); and the Super Soaker (Lonnie Johnson).

Black History Month Takes Shape

The foundations for Black History Month were laid in 1915 when historian Carter G. Woodson traveled to Chicago to attend the 50 anniversary celebration of the abolishment of slavery. Woodson noticed an absence of academic studies and acknowledgements of the contributions of African Americans in American history. In response to this, he organized the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History in 1915 and the Journal of Negro History in 1916, where historians and other scholars could focus research on African American experiences. In 1926, Woodson created Negro History Week in the second week of February, choosing that week for its overlap with the birthdays of President Abraham Lincoln and American abolitionist Frederick Douglas. Social change throughout the 1960s—spurred by the Civil Rights Movement and Black Power Movement—caused a shift across the United States. Younger generations of African Americans were changing how they related to their heritage within the nation’s popular historical narrative. Woodson’s organization was renamed the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH). ASALH members expanded celebrations of Black heritage to a month long and—50 years after Woodson created a week-long homage—Black History Month was celebrated for the first time in 1976.

Closing Thoughts

Africans entered the historical narrative of the United States of America through the Trans-Atlantic slave trade, the most horrific practice and period of modern history. Although legislation would eventually abolish slavery, grant African Americans citizenship, and the right to vote, decades more would pass before African Americans would be able to practice their rights as equal citizens. Fifty years after slavery was abolished in the United States, historian Carter G. Woodson noticed a need to acknowledge the history, heritage, and contributions of African American citizens in the United States and laid the foundations of what would later become Black History Month.

References (sorted alphabetically by source as “Post. Source: Link”):

Transatlantic slave trade. Britannica: https://www.britannica.com/topic/transatlantic-slave-trade
Slave Voyages, Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database. Emory University: https://www.slavevoyages.org/
Historical Context: Facts about the Slave Trade and Slavery. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History: https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-resources/teacher-resources/historical-context-facts-about-slave-trade-and-slavery
13th Amendment. HISTORY: https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/thirteenth-amendment
14th Amendment. HISTORY: https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/fourteenth-amendment
15th Amendment. HISTORY: https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/fifteenth-amendment
Black History Month. HISTORY: https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/black-history-month
Carter G. Woodson: The Man Behind Black History Month. HISTORY: https://www.history.com/news/the-man-behind-black-history-month
When Did African Americans Actually Get the Right to Vote? HISTORY: https://www.history.com/news/african-american-voting-right-15th-amendment
HISTORY OF | History of Black History Month. The HISTORY Channel Canada: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnSHm3Y9qYc
African American Voting Rights. Library of Congress: https://www.loc.gov/classroom-materials/elections/voters/african-americans/
Voyage of the Echo: The Trials of an Illegal Trans-Atlantic Slave Ship. Lowcounty Digital History Initiative: https://ldhi.library.cofc.edu/exhibits/show/voyage-of-the-echo-the-trials/historic-context--abolishing-t#:~:text=Britain%20finally%20abolished%20the%20trans,trade%20continued%20into%20the%201860s.
Americas Founding Documents. National Archives: https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs
Black Americans and the Right to Vote. National Archives: https://www.archives.gov/research/african-americans/vote
Brown v. Board of Education (1954). National Archives: https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/brown-v-board-of-education
Civil Rights Act (1964). National Archives: https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/civil-rights-act#:~:text=This%20act%2C%20signed%20into%20law,civil%20rights%20legislation%20since%20Reconstruction.
The Emancipation Proclamation. National Archives: https://www.archives.gov/exhibits/featured-documents/emancipation-proclamation#:~:text=President%20Abraham%20Lincoln%20issued%20the,and%20henceforward%20shall%20be%20free.%22
Carter G. Woodson. NAACP: https://naacp.org/find-resources/history-explained/civil-rights-leaders/carter-g-woodson
Black History Month. National Geographic Kids: https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/black-history-month
The transatlantic slave trade. National Museums Liverpool: https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/history-of-slavery/transatlantic-slave-trade
The Declaration of Independence, 1776. Office of the Historian: https://history.state.gov/milestones/1776-1783/declaration
PBS LEARNING MEDIA | Black History Month | PBS KIDS. PBS KIDS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f00AatzvxC0
Transatlantic Slave Trade. Slavery and Remembrance: https://slaveryandremembrance.org/articles/article/?id=A0002.
The History of Black History Month. Stanford: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNxzOliUCTc
Black History is American History | Okalani Dawkins | TEDxYouth@MVHS. TEDx Talks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VINtKSpbXw
Landmark Legislation: The Fourteenth Amendment. United States Senate: https://www.senate.gov/about/origins-foundations/senate-and-constitution/14th-amendment.htm#:~:text=Passed%20by%20the%20Senate%20on,laws%2C%E2%80%9D%20extending%20the%20provisions%20of

Rating Cheat Sheet

4.75 - 5.00 stars: Everyone should read this book! (If you’re into that sort of thing.)
4.00 - 4.50 stars: I appreciated many aspects of this book. I recommend it!
3.00 - 3.75 stars: I liked some aspects of this book. I won’t revisit it, but someone else might really like it.
2.00 - 2.75 stars: There were some things I appreciated about this book, but I do not recommend it.
0.25 - 1.75 stars: I do not recommend this book. I did not enjoy or appreciate the experience of it.

Post Date: 24 March 2025