Forever Young: A Life of Adventure in Air and Space by John W. Young

Forever Young: A Life of Adventure in Air and Space Reviews

• 
  Gary Schroeder

  So this is the one we've all been waiting for. Of all of the astronaut autobiographies, John Young's has been one of the most eagerly anticipated. John Young, the astronaut's astronaut. He's seen more and done more than any other astronaut in American history. No other astronaut can (or will ever be able to) lay claim to his achievements: flew on the first manned Gemini mission with the legendary Gus Grissom, commanded a later Gemini flight, flew to the moon on Apollo 10, the dress rehearsal for the first landing, landed on the moon as commander of Apollo 16, commanded the very first flight of the Space Shuttle, and then--as if that weren't enough--commanded a second shuttle mission, the first to carry the SpaceLab cargo. That's one tough act to follow. Naturally, everyone interested in the history of spaceflight wanted to hear directly from this man.
  
  Surprisingly, "Forever Young" (a kind of cheesy pun-based title it seems neither the author nor his editors could resist) is only fifty percent recollections of space adventures past. The other fifty percent is devoted to one of Young's lifelong passions: aerospace safety. Whether in the atmosphere in an airplane or flying through space in a rocket, the safety of the vehicle's crew seems to have always been uppermost in Young' s thoughts; it's a consistent theme that runs through his personal story.
  
  Following his final spaceflight, Young turned his attention full time to operational issues associated with the Space Shuttle. While it's apparent to anyone who ever paid much attention to the technical details of the shuttle that it was a very dangerous machine, Young's litany of concerns that he expressed to NASA management over the years (along with revealed details of problems that were never widely discussed in public) make one feel that the thing was a flying death trap. While it's clear that he felt that the shuttle could be operated safely, he conveys the sense that it was only sheer luck that prevented more tragedies than the two which resulted in crew losses. And it's certainly clear that he has little love for the NASA bureaucracy that seemed to stymy the vast majority of his safety improvement suggestions. He details these technical concerns in great detail. While they all seem quite reasonable, he never addresses the cost associated with implementing them. Anyone who engineers safety knows that there's an optimized curve between cost and safety performance. They're linearly related...but infinite safety requires infinite cash. What's the right balance between two in the real world of limited funds? That's a question the reader will have to answer for themselves.
  
  You probably won't learn a whole lot more about those early Gemini and Apollo flights than has been revealed elsewhere, but you'll learn much more about the inner workings of the shuttle program as well as what Young thinks about current national space policy. (Spoiler: he's none too pleased with it.) You'll also learn a lot about one of Young's recent passions: generating support for developing technologies to defend the earth from a potentially species-ending collision with an asteroid.
  
• 
  Heather Domin

  I've been waiting for this one for a long time now, and it was worth the wait. It's very comprehensive, covering a lot more than "I was born here, I went to school here", etc -- the heaviest focus is on the Shuttle era, including a lot of testimony and technical info from the Challenger and Columbia disasters. If you're not interested in that, you may find the second half of the book slow, or even padded; it's more of a space history book than an autobiography. For me, though, it filled in knowledge gaps and made my jaw drop several times. The writing style is great, too, pretty much as I expected. I'll need a second reading to absorb all the technical info, so I'm putting this one in the "buy it if they ever put out a reasonably priced e-book" list.
• 
  Dustin

  It was fun to read about the most accomplished astronaut in the history of manned space flight. It becomes very obvious early on that John Young is probably one of the smartest men alive, and probably the most earnest, devout supporter of the space program, in addition to being seriously concerned about the future of humanity. All throughout the book, as he's telling you about the amazing things he's experienced and accomplished, there are sentences and paragraphs explaining how he has new ideas for new challenges, or new ideas to fix old problems. It's abundantly obvious that he's operating on a different level from the rest of us. At times, it's almost like his career is an afterthought to his vision for the future, and humanity's survival. Personally, I was very inspired. I'm a Floridian that grew up in the shadow of the VAB at the peak of the shuttle program, and my roots here were born of the Apollo era. I live and breath the history of the Space Coast, and it's contribution to human history. Reading about John Young's life is necessary to a guy like me. When I say we should never have abandoned the Apollo pace, I'm just some guy. But when you read John Young saying it, it lends your own opinion a little more credibility. I hope and pray for more people like him.
• 
  Jon Cotton

  John Young walked on the moon. He drove the grand prix with the rover. Amazing stuff. Yet, and this surprises me, I enjoyed the detail into the shuttle program the most. It's hard to comprehend how any organization could design and implement a space program when nothing of the sort has been done before. Hard to imagine the logistics of coordinating hundreds of thousands of people. Yet NASA nailed it with Mercury, Gemini and Apollo. The Shuttle program lost the momentum and struggled.
  
  I'm a worker. I know that efficiency and "correctness" get lost (or prevented) by individual managers, the in-groups they foster and by layers of management in general. It gets worse across the mix of contractors with varying and different incentive alignments. Young writes about this in specifics about the Shuttle program. Especially in his crusade for safety. It's interesting and saddening.
  
  I appreciate also when Young calls out politics and public disinterest. NASA was hamstrung and still is today. How could we, the public, possibly lose interest in the greatest exploration humans have ever done? Why would politicians not leverage the raw, inherit excitement? I don't know. Young doesn't either.
  
  I disagree with another reviewer on this single point—Young does mention cost trade offs in some of his discussions on things that didn't happen. There were clear cases of waste and foolish decisions that cost much more down the line. Perfect safety doesn't exist and Young never implies it does. He was for reasoned, studied decisions that balanced cost.
  
  One of the clearest themes is the beautiful concept (I'm an engineer) of testing. Testing testing testing. That topic is never overbearing, I just want to applaud it. Well okay and to marvel at how Young is no timid fellow. STS-1 was the first flight of any program to fly manned. The other three programs launched unmanned shakeout flights. Young and Robert Crippen just hopped in and took the new bird for a spin. Wow.
  
  Young has rare experience and insight. I'm thankful it's written down.
• 
  Andreas

  John Young was undoubtedly the most experienced astronaut of NASA’s early era, active from the days of Gemini, through Apollo and the Space Shuttle. He walked on the Moon, commanded the first test flight of the Space Shuttle and didn’t retire from NASA until he was seventy-four. He was legendary for his soft-spoken demeanour, coolness under pressure and later in his career, for not being afraid to speak truth to power on issues of mission risk.
  
  His memoir is laid out in a straightforward chronological fashion, starting with early life and following him throughout his career in the Navy and at NASA. While he is most well known for his missions, his time as head of the Astronaut Office and then as a sort of senior and independent safety inspector within NASA, make up large parts of the narrative. There is also ample space dedicated to the Challenger and Columbia accidents, with extensive technical detail.
  
  For any NASA and space buff, the memoir is interesting reading. However, it is a bit of a slog. The style is quite dry and self-effacing, much as the man himself. Descriptions of missions mostly chronicle events without poetic embellishments. This is in stark contrast with, for example, the memoirs of Gene Cernan, Gene Krantz and Mike Mullane, which in their different ways speak much more passionately about the subject matter. The book feels long-winded in many parts, with sections which are just listing various mission achievements, seemingly for completeness’ sake. The most readable bits are where Mr. Young manages to convey his considerable technical expertise to illustrate an issue concisely, such as when he discusses his testimony before the Rogers Commission, investigating Challenger.
  
  I strongly felt that more decisive editing could have made this a more readable book, but then again, I also felt that Mr. Young’s particular voice came through loud and clear.
  
  
  http://www.books.rosboch.net/2018/09/...
• 
  Bob Crawford

  A brilliant flyer and astronaut … opinionated, technical and long winded as a writer
  
  John Young was my favorite astronaut. Who walked on the moon, flew the first space shuttle, even flew the test landings the day I saw Joe Engle land STS-2 Columbia at Edwards? John Young. He could do it all.
  The stories he tells about his early life, early flying and astronaut career are fascinating, though increasingly technical and jargon-packed the more chapters you read.
  But like many of us as we age, Young became increasingly frustrated that his experience hadn’t demanded others’ attention and clearly he felt ignored in his later NASA years. That’s sad and unfortunate on so many levels.
  In short, it sucks to get old.
  He deserves to be admired and remembered, but for all but the most ardent space enthusiasts, this book may not help his case.
• 
  Robert Carver

  Young's career during Gemini and Apollo has been well covered by the histories of those programs. The new ground broken here is Young's involvement with the Shuttle program. His mission with Crippen of STS-1 was the riskiest test flight ever flown during the space program. Even that has been covered elsewhere. The surprise in his book is how Young fought tirelessly for safety during his time dealing with the Shuttle program. It was shocking to read how many of Young's recommendations were ignored, lost in the bureaucracy, or denied due to a lack of funds. It's a wonder that more shuttles weren't lost due to NASA's inability to address Young's pressing safety concerns. Young dedicated his life to spaceflight and left his mark on the program. His legacy is assured.
• 
  Michael

  A really enjoyable read from one of the early astronauts. A great perspective on Young's career in spaceflight, and afterwards, when he wrote a *LOT* of memos about crew safety and other items during the Shuttle era. That section could be a little dry, but it gave a good perspective on what the issues were that plagued NASA during those years.
  
  I would have liked a bit more personal reflection on what it all meant to Young, how these experiences changed him, or didn't. But that can be an issue with many of these astronaut biographies. Personal reflection in print is not one of those items that gets included in these texts.
  
  Overall, a very good read, and I recommend it highly.
• 
  John

  The memoir was comprehensive covering the life of an astronaut from the early days to John Young's retirement in 2004. He was an intelligent and conscientious man who cared deeply about the safety of the other astronauts. The book is a straightforward account until the last several chapters when the focus shifts to saving the earth from asteroid destruction and environmental disaster. There is no trace of a spiritual belief component to his life which is probably intentional so as to not upset many readers. The lack of faith in God or anything beyond mankind colors Young's conclusions. If you are interested in our space program Forever Young is a must read.
• 
  Neil

  John Young, the most travelled astronaut in history and perhaps ever will exists after piloting 3 different space craft plus the LM and the lunar rover.
  
  I have somewhat mixed feelings about this book. Being such a fan of John Young and his work during Gemini and Apollo I was expecting much more of that stuff in this book, however, that stuff has already been covered in tons of memoirs. It does devote a lot of time to the development of the Space Shuttle which is a topic that is probably lacking in the space literature.
  
  Also found it interesting in that it seems like John Young has no time for Gene Kranz
• 
  R.J. Southworth

  An autobiography by such a long-serving astronaut, who flew on Gemini, Apollo and the Shuttle, is always going to be worth reading. You can certainly see how Young’s mind worked and where his values lay as he focusses far more on the technical details of Spaceflight (sometimes in a way difficult for the average reader to understand) than on the people around him. Probably the best part is the epilogue where he lays out his concerns and hopes for the future of Spaceflight.
• 
  Matt Murray

  Detailed, as you would expect
  
  Detailed and 100% Young’s perspective. Aside from the depth of detail and plethora of information I haven’t got in any other title it is very insightful in to Young’s state of mind and how he approached everything. A bit of a slog to get through but well worth it.
• 
  Donald McEntee

  Gemini. Apollo. Space Shuttle. Lots of detail. Very readable. A peek into the sausage factory; some of it is Not Pretty. Written by a major participant. The last few chapters require a willingness to tough it out.
• 
  Karla

  This man had an amazing career, and was both talented and kind- the kind of man you'd like to meet and know. Thank you for contributing to the literature- sharing your inspirational story was a gift. Thank you.
• 
  Larry Smith

  Very dry and well below expectations, considering the subject.
• 
  Jason Orthman

  Read on Kindle.
• 
  Laura

  Excellent book about the life of a great man who led an extraordinary life. Low ratings for lots of technical/detailed parts that I had to skim...
• 
  Jason Snell

  An all time astronaut but a weak memoir.
• 
  Du

  Astronauts have to be ego maniacs or it just doesn't work. Young has an ego, but he also has quite the experience to back it up. This book is very much about his knowledge expertise and understanding of tasks the reader can only think of as sifi.
• 
  Alan Livingston

  If you don’t know who John Young is, you should. There are not enough schools named after him, not enough statues or other tributes. Truly, he is worthy of being noted as one of the great explorers in human history, and he happens to have done it in the late 20th century, during many of our lifetimes. Like mine.
  
  Too much? Christopher Columbus wasn’t “the first”, he went someplace he didn’t mean to anyway, he got there by accident, and he’s got his own holiday? Plenty of statues, too.
  
  John Young was a part of many firsts in the history of humans leaving the planet, of space exploration: The first American two-man crew (Gemini), the first to detach from a mothership and descend toward the surface of the moon in a craft that alone would not get him home, the first to go into space and return in the space shuttle, and on and on. Don’t forget he’s one of only twelve men to walk on the moon, to drive on the moon, and work pretty hard on the moon. He deserves the appropriate respect, and his place in history.
  
  Add to that his life’s work to focus on the safety of those making space their work environment, in the interest of the future of mankind’s reach outward in order to preserve the species. That from the point of view of a true test pilot from a day when danger was an expectation of the job. So many of his warnings fell upon deaf ears and were ignored, only to have him later proven right. (See two space shuttle disasters.) Now, he warns of cataclysmic collisions with other-worldly bodies whose paths cross with ours on Earth. Many laugh and scoff. Should they? Should we?
  
  There may not be much I can add to other Goodreads reviews before me, many of which describe the general contents and layout of the book. I see no need to repeat that. I’ll agree with most that his is a terrific story, at the same time agreeing that there were some surprises versus my expectations: I expected more about Gemini and Apollo; I found his detail of the development of the space shuttle chopped off editorially. Pleasantly, his descriptions of his time working on the moon is fascinating. I can’t be the only one who could have heard even more from him there. And many have commented on the writing of the book, of Young as author.
  
  Generally, to that I say I didn’t expect him to be a brilliant author, because he’s got plenty of genius beyond writing. I just wanted to hear his story. What an honor it would be to meet him, to shake his hand. I wouldn’t care how his memoir was technically written. And for those reviewers who mentioned things like, “there were too many wrong facts”, and that it should have been “fact-checked”? He was there, they were not, so I’m believing Young.
  
  The good news is that he appears to have gotten help with the writing: “…with the assistance of internationally distinguished aerospace historian James Hansen…” The bad news is he should have gotten his money back. A story like this, a man like this, his contributions to society, etc., etc., all arguably deserve a better representation than this. Perhaps the intent was to capture the essence of Young’s personality: The content is pretty heavy on the darns and dangs, the rascals and the son-of-a-guns. Many will remember seeing Young on camera during and after flights, recalling that he always seemed to be a guy who could get excited in the moment. I’m not sure that excuses a memoir-writing style that includes a near-record use of exclamation marks, though.
  
  Still, even that only takes it “down” to a 4-star read for me. I don’t know what to say for those with no interest in the histories of human exploration in general, or of space exploration in particular. For anyone with any interest at all in either, this is a must-read.
  
  
• 
  Mary Drover

  Ha, I started this in March, but I literally only read the Foreword (by Mike Collins, whom I also love!), and then who the heck knows what happened, but I didn’t pick it up again until I was having this massive and sudden longing for space. John Young flew on Gemini X, which saw astronauts in Earth’s orbit as they prepared for a bigger and bolder mission; on Apollo 10, which orbited the moon and had the lunar module descend (but not land) to make sure that everything was functional; and commanded Apollo 16, where he walked on the moon, as well as several Shuttle missions. This biography began with his birth in the early 30s and ended in 2012, with him now retired from NASA.
  
  This was really adorable. I spent a lot of time talking about it on my Instagram story or sending my friends screenshots of different passages. I also showed anyone who would listen to me a super handsome picture of John in the beginning of his career. I definitely had a crush on him by the end of the book, but can you blame me? Look at that cutie! This was definitely, however, one of those astronaut books that you really only read if you’re super into space. There was a lot of technical jargon in it that I kind of glossed over, but a lot that was also really, really interesting. Young had a ton of knowledge, and did a lot of amazing things at NASA, and if space is your jam like me, this is definitely worth a read. I laughed, and I cried for the first time in a biography, and I really, truly enjoyed this little handsome dork and all his exclamation points.
• 
  Lynn

  A very thorough accounting of being at NASA and working on the space program from the 60's through the 80's. What it lacks is a personal touch -- Young's life, his feelings, insights and impressions. A lot of the big events feel glossed over because the account is so impersonal.
  
  I'm glad this book exists. It's important to document these times and events while the people who lived them are still there. But I guess I should accept that we only get one book like Carrying the Fire, and stop holding the other astronaut biographies up to that standard. On that score they disappoint, every time.