Not Necessarily Rocket Science: A Beginner's Guide to Life in the Space Age

by Kellie Gerardi

“Kellie is probably one of the best ambassadors for spaceflight in the 21st century that the industry could have.” ― Lucy Hawking , author of  George's Secret Key to the Universe  and host of Audible's  Lucy in the Sky . #1 Bestseller in Astronomy & Space Science, Universe Follow aerospace science professional Kellie Gerardi’s non-traditional path in the space industry as she guides and encourages anyone who has ever dreamed about stars, the solar system, and the galaxies in space. Ever wondered what it’s like to work in outer space?  In this candid science memoir and career guide, Kellie Gerardi offers an inside look into the industry beginning to eclipse Silicon Valley. Whether you have a space science degree or are looking to learn about stars, Kellie Gerardi’s,  Not Necessarily Rocket Science  proves there’s room for anyone who is passionate about exploration. What it’s like to be a woman in space.  With a space background and a mission to democratize access to space, this female astronaut candidate offers a front row seat to the final frontier. From her adventures training for Mars to testing spacesuits in microgravity, this unique handbook provides inspiration and guidance for aspiring female astronauts everywhere.
Look inside for answers to questions If you’re looking for women in science gifts, astronomy books for adults, or NASA stories―or enjoyed, the Galaxy Girls  book, Letters from an Astrophysicist  by Neil deGrasse Tyson, or How to Astronaut ―then you’ll love  Not Necessarily Rocket Science .

Genres: Nonfiction, Space, Science, Memoir, Stem, Audiobook, Adult

261 pages, Hardcover

First published November 17, 2020

Reviews

[Harmony Williams · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book did not live up to the promise of wonder of its opening pages.

Frankly, because the truth is not "anyone can go to space with commercial spaceflight". Middle class white women, yes. The kind of women who can not only afford to pursue a degree, but who can dedicate an additional year to a program in a career track they've already decided not to pursue. The kind of women who jetset around the world afterward to find themselves. The level of privilege dripping from this book is frankly disgusting.

Because it's not the Amazon worker who can hope to transfer to a career in space. They're too busy holding down two other jobs to make ends meet because Jeff Bezos, instead of paying a living wage, has decided to invest in commercial space flight. COMMERCIAL being the operative word here. It's all for profit. The level of hero worship and praise toward him and the other billionaires funding the commercial space flight industry is appalling.

So no, I'm not filled with wonder. I'm angry.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been space obsessed for much of my 40 years.  I have kept binders of articles, newspaper clippings, magazines - all about the achievements in space that have occurred in my lifetime and before.  I have read articles and books about getting there, what it was like being there, and the future of space travel.  I have watched all the movies and documentaries.  I've visited KSC and Houston.  Through all of these though, space has always felt far away and not something within my grasp to participate in.  

But this book...this book does something different, something that has been missing in all of the above, and something really important.  It lays out the framework for making space accessible - to everybody.

Kellie's passion is undeniable and she walks the reader through turning her passion into a successful career in an industry that seems closed off for just a certain group of people.  She gives the reader a great history lesson in the race to space, where we are now, and where this is all headed.  She talks about her experiences, how she networked and got involved, and gives the reader step by step guidance on how to do what she did.

This book should be required reading for every high school student - because even though it focuses on a career in space and SciComm, it lays the groundwork for how to turn passion into a successful and rewarding career.  

After reading this book I feel invigorated again and, even at 40, I'm going to figure out how I can participate in the Space Age.  Thank you, Kellie!

[Kelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a non-STEM person who began working in aerospace in 2019, this book gave me a real kick in the butt to examine my career more deliberately. Kellie does a great job recapping recent commercial spaceflight milestones, which felt like useful info I had missed out on, but also offers real gems of career advice.

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book opens with an interesting review of historical humanity's journey to space coupled with a fun look at the modern day commercial space flight industry. Gerardi usess most of the book promoting the idea of a "space age culture" where any person in any profession ("not necessarily rocket science") can contribute to the collective endeavor to explore and even live in space. It quickly becomes obvious that the author is an online influencer by the time she spends giving a defense to some of her remarks she feels were misconstrued online, explaining her online origin story, giving a quick tutorial on drafting an online website resume, etc. It felt a little off -topic for me.

[Shauna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is deceptively small. It's only 264 pages, but the information packed into it is amazing. I was drawn to the book because of Kellie. She is an astronaut, but her degree is not in science, it's liberal arts. I found that intriguing. She is clearly passionate, and a bit of a nerd - which I love. I was done in by the amount of information. The last few pages contain lists of places to start if you are an aspiring astronaut, which seem like realistic launching points.

[Carmen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is digestible. Space history is given in such a way that it doesn't get bogged down in tangents. Honestly, if Gerardi wants to write a whole book on space history (or any segment of it), I would gladly read. Her writing style is to the point while being entertaining.

"Not Necessarily Rocket Science" proves the book's premise: communication skills are needed when it comes to spaceflight. It breaks down everything clearly and there is even a handy guide on how to be a science communicator on social media.

Aesthetically speaking, this book is gorgeous. The physical edition is small and compact which I adored. The paragraphs are separated like the formatting found in fan fiction. I loved that the paragraphs are separated like that. One chapter is even called "They Should Send Poets" and I had to put it down as I clutched my heart.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the brief history of humans in space.
The chapter on her career path would be a great one for a every high school sophomore and junior.
Chapter 8's discussion of gender and racial inequity in space exploration is excellent. I love the list at the end of that chapter of the huge variety of careers/skills/talents that space exploration/settlement will need - not just rocket scientists.

[Marielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Highlighting non tech people in the tech industry is important work 👏 But, unfortunately, the content was not very exciting.

[Candice · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded up. Currently hyperfixated on all things space so I really enjoyed it lol but it definitely is a short read that leaves you wanting to learn more. Good intro to modern space exploration.

[Nic Lishko · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very lovely book about entering the space program without the STEM tagline. I love the idea of a STEAM program and am all about it! While I didn't agree politically at the end with the author, I thought her book was wonderful and I've already recommended it to 3 friends!

[Francisco Torres · Rating 1 out of 5]

Beware that this is a self-promoting book.

[Dorothy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I throughly enjoyed this book and it will be a great resource for anyone of any age and educational background interested in starting a career in the space industry.

There are several key parts of this narrative that Ms. Gerardi does not provide much detail on that were pivotal to the start of her career. This includes what expedition she was a part of that enabled her to attend the fateful explorers club dinner at which she met her early key mentors. I don’t begrudge Ms. Gerardi her adventures (I’m certainly scheming to find a path to similar experiences myself, which is what lead me to read this book in the first place) but it does seem like Ms. Gerardi’s commercial space career was directly enabled by some level of external funding not available to most others with similar belatedly-realized ambitions.

If she puts together a second edition I hope she’ll expand the list of resources at the end of the book to include opportunities for funded on-the-job or training (if it even exists) that targets interested career changers who don’t have the financial means to make the pivots she did, but do have the growing interest in the space industry.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this book recommended to me and I found it on Scribd so decided to give it a go. Kellie Gerardi works in the Commercial Space sector but doesn't have any of the usual background qualifications in aerospace engineering, rocket science or astrophysics. Despite this she pushed her way into the industry and became very successful as a space and science communicator as well as getting a lot of experiences she wouldn't otherwise have gotten (like flying a series of microgravity research flights to help test a space suit). I thought it would be interesting to read about someone working in the space industry who came from a non typical background.

Gerardi breaks downs the timeline of space travel really well right from the Apollo era to now. It is done in a really basic way so you can understand the content but also have grounds to explore more if you so wish. I have a decent knowledge of NASA up to around 2011, when the space shuttle era ended but I will admit at the time of reading this book, I knew little to nothing about the commercial space industry except that SpaceX were launching rockets...🙈

This book serves as an overview of the industry as well as a memoir of sorts and a guide as to how to break into the industry in a non traditional way. I enjoyed learning about Gerardi's journey (though some of it was definitely luck and privilege) and more about the commercial space industry as a whole. I felt parts of it were a bit disjointed as the tips as to how to break into the industry were interspersed in relevant chapters, whereas I think it might have flowed better if there were a solid chapter or two at the end with all the advice and tips. I did struggle with bits of it but I think overall it was a good read and a nice change from reading an astronaut memoir.

[Eric · Rating 2 out of 5]

Je ne dirais pas que c'est un mauvais livre en soi, mais je pense que c'est plutôt moi qui me suis trompé en l'achetant. Mais maintenant que c'est fait, il me faut bien donner mon avis.

En fait je pensais que ce serait un livre sur l'exploration spatiale, notamment le new space. Mais ce n'est pas le cas, puisqu'il s'agit largement d'une autobiographie et d'une sorte de guide de développement personnel sur comment entrer dans le domaine quand on n'a pas de diplôme de science.

Du coup n'ayant pas de diplôme de science, elle est entrée dans le domaine par le biais de la pub/marketing. Elle est d'ailleurs très apte à développer sa propre marque. C'est un peu ce qui me gêne dans se livre, l'aspect publicitaire et volontariste, même si c'est très américain.

Quelques bonnes pages, ce que j'ai préféré étant les chapitres du début qui résument de façon rapide mais digeste tout le début de l'exploration spatiale.

[Devon May May · Rating 4 out of 5]

“𝘏𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘺𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘺, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘯𝘰 𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘮𝘺𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧.”

This book proves to be exactly what it claims: a beginners guide to life in the space age. There are no overcomplicated acronyms or physics, and everything is laid out in a beginner friendly way. Throughout the book we follow Gerardo’s journey into the space age, from her beginnings in space media and communications to her career as an aerospace & defence professional.

Gerardi paints the perfect picture of how anyone with enough guts and desire can make a difference in the further of space travel. Insightful and interesting, Not Necessarily Rocket Science is a must for all those who dream of the stars, wondering if we will ever travel that far. It is an enlightening tour of an often misunderstood industry.

[Christy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I somehow ran across Kellie Gerardi on Instagram right before she went into space on a commercial space flight, fulfilling her lifelong dream. So, I listened to her book the "Women in STEAM" prompt for the 52 book challenge.

She grew up in the shadow of NASA and has always been fascinated by space. She has worked her entire career as a scientist in space adjacent jobs to promote exploration. The book was published before she was able to go on her space flight. It was inspiring to see a strong female set her mind to do something that is in a male dominated industry and to accomplish it.

She is very passionate about space exploration in part to search for where humans can go in generations when we destroy the earth. I have to admit, that is something that holds no interest for me. Though it would be fun to go to space!

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Kellie and follow her on social media. I was excited to finally have the time to read her book. I did enjoy jt, however I was left wanting more details. Essentially, yes - she did answer the question of how can a non-scientist get to space. However, I had so many questions about how a non-scientist ended up in the Explorers Club. How her goals of going to space played out in her relationship leading to marriage and if it played a role in deciding to have kids. As someone who loves space and dreams of going myself, these are things I thought would be discussed. I was also a bit bummed that so much of the book was blurbs from press releases and interviews instead of narrative content created for the book. I prefer things like that in an appendix as they take me out of the moment.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had a little bit of everything! A Cliff's Notes version of space history upfront, a little bit about about the author's journey, tips on how to be a better science communicator, and a summary of the state of current space race.

The author shares her passion for space with the reader and it's hard not to share in the excitement with her!

Before reading this book, I regarded the Mars One program with a giggle and would look down on it as a joke. Kellie persuasively and succinctly explained in the book why it wasn't a scam and actually aided the space race mission overall. I actually gained a whole new respect and perspective for Mars One after!

Great read! I enjoyed this book immensely.

[Ryan George · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this book, Kellie Gerardi deftly connects space travel’s history to its future. She tells her story of hustle defensively, as though it’s been criticized a lot. It very well may have, but I wasn’t familiar with her outside of this book. She leverages that external distrust to encourage others who dream of space exploration and to give them practical steps to follow her example. I was really struck by her perspective that private space companies are collectively democratizing space travel. My biggest takeaway from Gerardi’s book will be her description of the overview effect—how looking at earth from outside it changes the permanent mindset of astronauts toward humility and global unity.

[Andrada · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is such a great inspirational book for anyone who is passioned about space and not only. I am following Kellie for quite a long time now so I kind of knew her journey, however, in this book she offers different perspectives regarding different matters related to the space industry. Her motivation and devotion towards commercial spaceflight industry is very inspiring. "Gerardi takes us on a tour of this unique era of history and offers encouragement and advice for anyone who has ever dreamed of the stars and galaxies far, far away."

[Jenna Bell · Rating 4 out of 5]

not my usual read

While not my usual read I really enjoyed this book. I learned so much and it gave me so much hope for my daughter’s future. She’s 10 and declaring she wants to work for NASA. This book gives me home that her love of space doesn’t have to boxed into NASA and I can help her expand her dream. Kellie’s passion oozes from the pages as she gives the USA’s history in space and her opinion on commercial space flights and the future of space.

[Alex Kris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the book I needed as a broken hearted 21 year old who had just had her dreams of becoming a naval aviator and ultimately an astronaut crushed. Unfortunately, I didn’t find this gem till nine years later. I learned much about the space industry and specifically the increase in commercial space through this work. As I begin working towards new career goals this work has inspired me that maybe my childhood dream of space is not entirely lost.

[Adria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book. Kellie’s take on being a “space outsider” is fascinating and encouraging for anyone outside of STEM with an interest in space! As a long time space nerd, I finished this book across two short flights (plane, not rocket, unfortunately. 🤣) and I found myself wishing it had a sequel. The world needs more Kellie Gerardis who are pushing for space to truly be for everyone!!!

[Kristin Pletcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! As a little girl I was an astronaut wanna-be. I wished I would have found this book and Kellie’s inspiration during middle or high school. This book shows a woman’s journey to the new age of commercial space flight through a non-traditional path. Very encouraging for non-engineer/STEM kiddos to forge their own path and make their own way if space is their passion. Also, very encouraging for working mommas!

[Eric Carzon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very insightful and accessible book. I've been doing a lot of reading in this space, and this book is on the top of my list. If you have an interest in the space age economy, you need to read this book. As a person who is also not an engineer or scientist, I found her insights particularly useful.

[Rob · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an interesting biography - but it seemed to jump around a lot. Too much for an old guy to read easily :) Nice topic - and if you are in the younger generation this provides some ideas on how to get into the space program of the future (whatever that’ll look like.)

[Lynna Goldhar Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was thrilled for the first few chapters and then suddenly what am I reading? It was a love letter to the idea of commercial space travel and I had to jump over pages of hype to find the odd worth while idea. Did not live up to it's potential and it made me sad because of such a great start

[Kyara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love that this is written by a woman regarding STEM. It was extremely easy to keep up with and she broke everything down beautifully. I’m not a non fiction person by any means but I enjoyed this book and flew through it quick.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
Very interesting if space is your jam. For me it was a tad dry, but I did love her take on anyone being able to make contributions to the study of space. Not just rocket scientists but artists, medical providers, etc.

[Aimee Sarchet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed! It’s a quick and inspiring listen!
It does feel a little self important at times, but I also loved hearing about Kellie’s journey to her career path.

📚: Read via audio & the narration was great!