Rating: 
Summary: Far better than the film which was great
Review: Homer Hickam's book is far better than the film which was great. One of the previous reviewers apparently only saw the movie since he wrote that the book was mostly about the Rocket boys going to the National Science Fair. Not so! Only the last few chapters have anything to do with the fair. The movie focused on that but this book is more about life in the small mining town where Homer (nicknamed Sonny) and the other five boys grew up. Sonny's dad's name is also Homer (not John as in the film). It is a rousing tale, one which will have you laughing one minute and crying the next. Highly recommended for the literate reader.
Rating:
Summary: a must read!!
Review: October Sky starts out in a mining town called Coalwood with a group of boys that were getting bored with life. They decide to enter into the national fair with a rocket. The boys under extreme opposition from the town manage to get their first one built. The town soon sees the danger and forces them way out of Coalwood. There are many hard times that front them but they cope. Some things happen in the family and such so there is a balance of drama. Most of the book concentrates on their trying to get to the fair. It takes hard work and diligence on the boy's part to build a rocket to get to the local fair. Some how they come out on top in the fair and keep working to get to the national fair. Will they get to the nationals? Well read it and find out. A great story of some young men that over comes a towns oppression and come out though it all, as winners. It could teach us all to work harder and to not give up in the face of adversity. There are three versions and I have heard the other two are good also. They are both called "Rocket Boys". I recommend it to you and hope you get to read it.
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable even if you've already seen the movie
Review: I read this book after having seen the movie, and I've watched the movie again since reading the book. Due to the extra details and some differences between the book and the movie, I very much enjoyed the book even though knew how it would end.
Rating:
Summary: A must read memoir
Review: Rocket Boys is the story of Homer Hickam, a 14 year old boy in Coalwood, west Virginia. Coalwood is a mining town, and Homer's dad is the superintendent of mines, a company man. The small, insular community is not a place for dreamers, as Homer's mother has discovered, but she encourages Homer when Sputnik I sparks his curosity. As his love for rockets grows he assembles a small group of friends and names the motley crew the Big Creek Missile Agency. Together, they set out to build a rocket that will fly, and in the process earn the grudging respect of many of their peers. But there is conflict at home, Homer's father hopes Homer will be an engineer and join him in the mine, and his older brother Jim is too busy being the football star and planning his escape on a college scholarship.This is a wonderful story of a young man following his dream and being too naive to believe it cannot come true. Powering his rockets with a mix of powder and moonshine, Homer not only gets his rockets to fly, he gains an entry to the national science fair. This is a wonderful story, told with a keen eye to the personalities that pooulate Coalville. At its heart it is a story of a young man coming of age in a changing world.
Rating:
Summary: October Sky: A Memoir
Review: This is a truly inspiring story which perfectly evokes a time and place. I saw the movie first, and was equally entranced and touched by the book. Hickam's rich and descriptive details make the people and the places they inhabit come alive. I highly recommend this book for teachers. It is a great coming of age story about a teenage boy's relationship with his parents, and the pursuit of a dream.
Rating:
Summary: A Great , Great story,
Review: I get so depressed by some of the books on the market. Heavy themes, hidden meanings, verbose authors. October Sky is a get what you see book. It is simple but not too simple. It is an honest story about an honest guy growing up in West Virginia. His life is like ours. He has friends and enemies, successes and failures, girlfriends and conflicts.But his life is also a model for our time. Homer Hickam is a very special person and he has told the story of his life in this book. Mr. Hickam grew up modestly in a coal mining town. His love of rocketry, no his passion for rocketry pulls him out of an average community and propels him to success inspite of his family and surroundings. Few books appeal to adults and young adults alike. This is one. I want my wife to read it as well as my 13 year old son. Hickam is a mentor and I've never even met him. This is such down to earth honest writing it makes you smile. Read this wonderful story and you will have a hard time approaching your next mystery or drama. It is refeshing. I don't even want to see the movie after reading this book. I want the images I have to last not the ones Hollywood created.
Rating:
Summary: Just a really good story
Review: I came upon this book by chance in the airport bookstore, that place where most good books are available. I thought, "what the heck, it'll be different." It certainly was. I couldn't put it down -- literally. I was reading the darn thing at lunch! Enjoy...it's just a great example of the rite of passage genre combined with background (coal mining) dear to the heart of my wife's family, and the main character is a man just exactly my own age. The characterizations are wonderful. As a writer wannabe, I only wish I could do as well.
Rating: 
Summary: Over Abridged!
Review: Having just visited Coalwood for the Fall Rocket Boys Festival, listening to the tapes was great fun, but unfortunately the special details of young Hickam's relationships, private lessons about life, and those secrets shared about his parents are omitted too often. Sadly, his special confident (Sonny's cat) is barely mentioned--and nothing is said about his mother's unusual pet squirrel, Chipper! The audio version, like the movie, focuses on the rocket-mtaking. While this tale of scientific discovery is most amazing--the real charm of the story centers on the company town of Coalwood, West Virginia--its people and their stories. While the rocketry inspires, readers will learn more from Sonny's private thoughts as he turns into a young man and the mining town begins its decline. I'd recommend the audio as a 'teaser' for the Real Story.
Rating: 
Summary: A charming and inspiring story!
Review: This endearing memoir of a NASA engineer recalls life in Coalwood, a small West Virginia coal mining town, during the author's high school years of the late 1950's. It captures the essence of youth complete with sibling rivalry, mischief, and the quest for knowledge of how things work--the hallmark of young boys. In addition, the description of Coalwood brings to life the meaning of growing up in a small mining town--its sights, smells, and sounds. It teaches adults a great lesson--that of guiding youth to follow their passions and of encouraging them along the way. Its message is for the average guy--not the most popular or wealthy one--suggesting that ideas can be the key to the path of success in life. This is especially wonderful reading for any high school student with unconventional ideas or for any teacher who hopes to make a difference in a student's life.
Rating:
Summary: The best book I've ever read
Review: This book is very inspiring, moving, and up-lifting. I saw the movie and loved it, so I had to read the book and I loved it even more than the movie. You find out about a lot more things that happend to him in the book than you do in the movie. It's a very touching book with laughs, tears, and suprises. I would recommend reading the book before seeing the movie
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