Was purchased due to a requirement by my childs school. He has informed me it is a good book.

Homer Hickam grew up in a rural isolated mountain town but went on to win the National Science Fair.

This book is his story and how he was successful.

I bought 24 copies of this book to inspire my advanced 6th grade Reading class. They loved the book. In our discussions they mentioned never giving up. Homer and his friends kept trying until they had success.

Thank you for sharing your life with us, Mr. Hickam.

... "On June 4, 1960, the Big Creek Missile Agency, fresh from its medal winning performance at the National Science Fair, is sponsoring a day of rocket launches at its Cape Coalwood range. Everyone reading these words is invited..." This quote can be found on page 356-357 of a book called Rocket Boys; this statement showed me that the success of the main characters was a result of personal hard work and teamwork.

"Rocket Boys" by Homer H. Hickam, Jr. is a nonfiction account of a group of friends from Coalwood, West Virginia in the early 1960's who have a fetish for making rockets. Homer and his friends have a dream to shoot a rocket up into the clouds. This story gives the reader a message that dreams really can come true.

Rocket Boys is one of the strongest books I have ever read. The author accomplished his goals to tell people that team work is one of the most important things to know in your life. This book is recommended for people that like space and rockets and who want a hopeful book to read. Reading Rocket Boys really gets you thinking about team work and how far you can get with it.

I was a little disappointed by the ending and the fact that Homer Hickam gave John Kennedy the idea to go to the Moon but other than that I couldn't help but root for the band of misfits.

I bought this book and the audio tapes and my son and I listened and read this amazing book together. Our plan was to read for 30 minutes a night...however it was sooooooo good we listened and read for 5 hours!

We are now going to rent the movie that was made from the film! All systems go....we enjoyed the adventure!

Children in West Virginia mining towns became coal miners. They did not become rocket scientists. But it did not matter how well-known this was, for Homer "Sonny" Hickam, Jr. there was only one way out. He was the right age and had the right amount of ambition when the United States and Russia became entangled in the Space Race and as far as he was concerned, his fate was sealed.

Hickam's writing carried the comfort of conversation with an old friend. It was remarkable how easily I became nostalgic for neither a time nor a place that I had ever known. The story drips with the passion of a man who if he had to do it all over again, probably wouldn't change a thing. He understood and appreciated the importance of everything that happened to him and helped him on his way.

One thing that I found particularly fascinating was how closely this book resembled the old proverb that It takes a whole village to raise a child. And I mean no disrespect to Mr. Hickam when I point out how amazing his circumstance was in that he could not have done it alone. The stars seemingly aligned perfectly so that one boy from West Virginia could capture the hearts of so many people that he would be able to get such invaluable assistance. There was probably no way anyone else could have done what he did. And that is to his credit. (The way his path was guided by fate, or something like it, reminded me of how Ruth Reichl became a food critic in Tender at the Bone: Growing Up at the Table.)

I loved this book for Hickam's ability to transport me from my favorite reading chair to a West Virginia high school in the late 50s. I found myself hanging on every word wondering what would happen next. There is something special about an intelligently written story about a successful man who takes no credit for himself, but rather gives it to each person who helped him make his dreams come true. Rocket Boys may now find itself among the short list of my favorite books.

Just finished this book at 3:00am last night and the only negative comment I have is "why did it have to end?". I saw October Sky a few years ago and it was an exceptional movie - don't make the rash judgment I almost made in thinking that the book would probably not be be better than the movie because it is much, much better. It has only been a day since I've finished it but I'm still warmed by it and would have to put in into my top 10 all time greatest books. I was born in 1949 in a small upstate NY town and lived the fear generated by Sputnik. I think Homer would agree with me that, as tough as it was growing up then, it was the closest thing to heaven on earth as one could be. Wish I could go back.

This book is the 2008 One Siouxland/One Book selection.(That's Sioux City, IA and surroundings) and it is a briliant choice. I have always been fascinated by people who can concentrate on one thing and see it through. This is a story about that and much more. I was delightedly surprised that this is so well written. Often you can see the "seams" in amateur writing, but not in this. The book is stuffed with themes, unrequited love, father/son, brother/brother, mother/son, unrequited love, jocks/nerds, small town/big dreams, corporation/individual, union/corporation, I could go on. Yet, it never seems thin. The only problem I had with the book was that events seemed to happen in clusters. This made it read like fiction, but I doubt it happened that way in real life. This is memoir rather than autobiography and I allow the writer to take liberties. I truly enjoyed this book and look forward to discussing it with others. I doubt I would have found this book if the committee hadn't chosen it.

I loved this story about boys from a West Virginia coal mining town who decide to join the space race after the Russian launching of sputnik sparks their imaginations. Hickam artfully portrays a great cast of characters in the small town of Coalwood as the boys go from being the town nuisance to its pride and joy. This is not a sleepy little town, mining troubles, family drama, school issues and exploding rockets keep the interest level high throughout. Even a bus ride to school is eventful in this page turning memoir. I would also say that this is a great book for middle school and up as it shows the importance of education in achieving your dreams and makes an effortless history lesson of the 1950's as well. One of my top favorites.

I loved this book about boys from a West Virginia coal mining town who decide to join the space race after the Russian launching of sputnik sparks their imaginations. Hickam portrays a great cast of characters in the small town of Coalwood as the boys go from being the town nuisance to its pride and joy. This is not a sleepy little town, mining troubles, family drama, school issues and exploding rockets keep the interest level high throughout. Even a bus ride to school is eventful in this page turning memoir. It is a great book for middle school and up as it shows the importance of education in achieving your dreams and makes an effortless history lesson of the 1950's as well. This ranks in my top ten of books I have read, up there with to To Kill a Mockingbird.

I saw the movie "October Sky" several times prior to reading the book "Rocket Boys." As much as I enjoyed the movie, I enjoyed book even more. The best thing about the book is that it allows us to see Homer Hickam's doubts during his years as a Rocket Boy. I appreciate Mr. Hickam sharing his story in this memoir.

Coalwood, West Virginia, is a small coal mining "company" town. Boys grow up to work in the mine or, if they're lucky, they go to college on a football scholarship or join the armed services. Homer "Sonny" Hickam Jr., the son of the mine manager (and a "company man") isn't any good at football. But when the Russians launch Sputnik in 1957 and beat America into space he becomes interested in rockets. Along with his friends Roy Lee, Sherman, and O'Dell, they make some futile attempts (blowing up his mother's fence) and include the school nerd Quentin into their group. They work hard to understand complicated math subjects like trigonometry and calculus and experiment with different fuel mixes. With the encouragement of their chemistry teacher and others (especially Sonny's mother) they keep at it, in spite of the discouragement of others. Eventually their rockets are blowing up less and less, and reaching heights over a mile, and Sonny represents the school in the National Science Fair.

I saw the movie "October Sky" about this true story several years ago, but it wasn't very memorable and I couldn't recall any details. I've since rented it again but wasn't particularly impressed this time either - it just wasn't very interesting. But I couldn't put the book down, reading it in just a couple of days. For being a NASA engineer, Mr. Hickam is a very gifted writer, and he brings to life this inspiring tale of how he and his friends reached for their dreams, and you feel what it was like to grow up in Coalwood and can relate to his feelings. Especially interesting is the relationship (or lack of one) he has with his father, who is not pleased with his son's desires that don't include working in the mine. But when he shows Sonny why he loves the mine, and as Sonny sees into his father's character, it's an amazing insight. It's also interesting how many people in the town get behind them, even risking their jobs to help out the boys. The way the mine machinists start offering suggestions and making parts for them, then showing up at their launches at the slag dump they call "Cape Coalwood," emphasizes how much of an inspiration the boys become to the townspeople. And I really loved the way the newspaper reporter (for a small "grocery store rag") becomes one of their biggest cheerleaders. This is an inspirational book about growing up that I recommend enthusiastically!

"Rocket Boys" by Homer Hickam is his personal memoir of how he got started on his life's passion.

Our main character is the son the of the mine supervisor in Coalwood, West Virginia. Coalwood is a close-knit company town centered around the coal mine. The company provides housing, medical/dental care, education as well as employment. Homer's father is the defacto mayor of this town.

The Hickam family is dysfunctional. Homer's father is monomanically obsessed with his coal mine. Homer's mother understands and resents this. Her dream is to move to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina away from the grimy mining towns she has always lived in. The two parents fight their battle in words and silently, vicariously through their sons.

Homer called "Sonny' belongs to his mother. His older brother, Jim is more his fathers son. Sonny is the romantic dreamy type. Roy Lee is the popular best-dressed jock. The two brother despise each other and have as little to do with each other as possible.

When the story begins it is 1957, Sputnik has launched. On impulse Sonny announces he is going to build a rocket. No one takes him seriously. He's a lackluster high school student a fact his father never ceases to remind him of. But with the help of his friends and a dedicated teacher, he learns the fundamentals of rocketry. Their experiments in rocketry eventually engage the entire community.

Homer and his friends grow with their experiments as do their expectations in life. Along they way they have to deal with the problems of growing up teenagers in tough coal mining country.

This book is about young men finding themselves and rising above their circumstances.

On the surface, Rocket Boys is the story of a group of small town West Virginia kids who upon seeing Sputnik are inspired to build their own rockets. In doing so, they learn to use a scientific approach and teach themselves trigonometry, calculus, and nozzle design as well as overcome other hurdles and roadblocks from people who didn't believe the sons of West Virginia coalminers could build successful rockets. Through their hard work and tenacity, they change a lot of minds and ultimately win a gold medal at the 1960 National Science Fair. The book inspired the major motion picture, "October Sky"

What truly made this story fascinating to me, however, are Hickam's observations of the people in his life and the dynamics in his family, his town, between the coal company and the union, and at his school. The characters he depicts are fascinating and he describes these characters in such a way you are drawn in and feel like you are a part of the town and the "Big Creek Missile Agency." The mining engineer and former fighter pilot who befriends and assists the young rocketeers, the teacher who inspires them and helps Hickam through rocky times in this life, and his mother, who must be a really incredible person, are all described in detail and make you wish you could meet them. Hickam makes you feel the joy of his successes as well as the sorrow of his personal losses and heartbreaks. After reading this book, I happened to be in that area and took a trip up route 16 through War, WV (where Big Creek High School is located) to Coalwood. After reading Hickam's descriptions, it was easy to make out the landmarks and the pieces of his childhood that still remain.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book highly recommend it.

On the surface, Rocket Boys is the story of a group of small town West Virginia kids who upon seeing Sputnik are inspired to build their own rockets. In doing so, they learn to use a scientific approach and teach themselves trigonometry, calculus, and nozzle design as well as overcome other hurdles and roadblocks from people who didn't believe the sons of West Virginia coalmines could build successful rockets. Through their hard work and tenacity, they change a lot of minds and ultimately win a gold medal at the 1960 National Science Fair. The book inspired a major motion picture, "October Sky"

What truly made this story fascinating to me, however, are Hickam's observations of the people in his life and the dynamics in his family, his town, between the company and the union, and at his school. The characters he depicts are fascinating and he describes these characters in such a way you are drawn in and feel like you are a part of the town and the "Big Creek Missile Agency." The mining engineer who drinks too much and befriends as assists the young rocketeers, the teacher who inspires them and helps Hickam through rocky times in this life, and his mother who must be a really incredible person are all described in detail and make you wish you could meet them. Hickam makes you feel the joy of his successes as well as the sorrow of his personal losses and heartbreaks. After reading this book, I happened to be in that area and took a trip up route 16 through War, WV (where Big Creek High School is located) to Coalwood. After reading Hickam's descriptions, it was easy to make out the landmarks and the pieces of his childhood that still remain.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book highly recommend it.

I cannot believe it has taken me so long to getting around to reading this book. Our community had one of those reading together projects and the paper back version of this book was free. I cannot remember exactly when I got it (it was either the fall of 2001 or 2002) but I got it because I had seen and enjoyed the movie.

Well as is often the case the book is far superior top the movie. I found it hard to stop reading this at times keeping me up way past my bed time at times. I haven't had a book that grabbed my attention like this one in decades. It is moving and inspiring. It truly shows what you can accomplish with hard work and determination.
The book adds depth that the movie doesn't have time to cover. IT explores the family dynamics of Homer, Elsie, Jim and Sonny. It makes you feel like you are a part of that family living in Coalwood, WV in the late 50's. I have read many other books about NASA by people who were Astronauts or worked at NASA but this was by far the most engaging. I cannot wait to read the next book in the series!

I would recommend this as a read to anyone, but especially to teens. It deals with the struggles of going through adolescence and trying to find your place in life.