Mercury Rising: John Glenn, John Kennedy, and the New Battleground of the Cold War

Mercury Rising: John Glenn, John Kennedy, and the New Battleground of the Cold War by Jeff Shesol. This is the story of the US space program, basically from Sputnik to John Glenn's orbiting the earth. Lots of info on the 'space race' with the Soviets and the battle for funding for the US program. A lot of this book focuses on John Glen, his background and his family life. Covers much of the same period as the book and movie 'The Right Stuff' but without the dramatics, more of the nuts and bolts of the space program. For people already familiar with the history of the space program, the author does not spend time explaining things he knows his audience is already familiar with.