Tuesday Intros & Teaser Tuesdays - 'The Astronaut Wives Club' by Lily Koppel

This week I'm using a book I'm really excited about for these memes. I have had it on my Kindle for ages and always saved it for a special time, but I've decided that now is simply the time to get started. This book is The Astronaut Wives Club  by Lily Koppel. One of my favourite films is 'The Right Stuff', about America's first astronauts, and I always loved the women in it, so this read should be right up my alley.

In a thoroughly researched page-turner that transports readers back to the beginnings of our space race, bestselling author Lily Koppel reveals for the first time the stories and secrets of America's unsung heroes-the wives of our original astronauts.

As America's Mercury Seven astronauts were launched on death-defying missions, television cameras focused on the brave smiles of their young wives. Overnight, these women were transformed from military spouses into American royalty. They had tea with Jackie Kennedy, appeared on the cover of Life magazine, and quickly grew into fashion icons, donning sherbet-swirled Pucci dresses and lacquering their hair into extravagant rocket styles.

Annie Glenn, with her picture-perfect marriage and many magazine features, was the envy of the other wives; platinum-blonde bombshell Rene Carpenter was proclaimed JFK's favorite; Betty Grissom worried her husband was having affairs; Louise Shepard just wanted to be left alone; and licensed pilot Trudy Cooper arrived on base with a dirty secret. With each spectacular launch, they worried they might never see their husbands again. Together they formed the Astronaut Wives Club.

A fascinating, dishy and moving read, , set against the backdrop of the Space Age and a country that would be forever changed by it, THE ASTRONAUT WIVES CLUB tells the real story of the women who stood beside some of the biggest heroes in American history.

Tuesday Intros is hosted by Diane over atBibliophile by the Sea and Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by MizB over at Should Be Reading.


Intro:

'They had endured years of waking up alone, making their kids breakfast, taking them to school and picking them up, fixing dinner and kissing them good night, promising that Daddy was thinking of them all the time. There had been lonely nights when they fell asleep wondering how they were going to get by on their husbands' measly pay for another month. During tours of duty in World War II or Korea or both, their husbands had nearly become mirages. Navy deployment had taken their men away on six to nine month cruises to the far corners of the Earth. They'd each wait for half a year imagining their man, trying not to forget what he looked like, only to have him come home hungry and tired. They'd miss him even before he left.' 2%

I love the sound of the beginning because not only does it remind you that this was a different time which meant a different "role" for women, but also that the life of the wife of a test pilot was even harder.

Teaser:
'No matter what a wife had to sweep under the carpet, keeping a peaceful marriage was not just an imperative of American womanhood, but in this day when everything could be wiped out at the push of a button, a matter of national security. The seven Astrowives would show them the way,' 16%
I love how unapologetically Koppel criticizes American society in this book. It's really interesting and it makes you feel very sorry for these women who were pushed into the limelight when their husbands decided to accept a job.

So, that's what I'm reading! What are you teasing us with today?