Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid is a soaring, emotional novel set against the backdrop of the 1980s space shuttle program. At its heart is Joan Goodwin, a quiet, brilliant physicist whose lifelong fascination with the stars suddenly takes on new urgency when she sees a NASA advertisement calling for women scientists to join the shuttle program. That one moment sets her life on a path she never imagined.
Joan has always been content with her role as a professor and a devoted aunt, but something shifts. The idea of space and becoming one of the few to actually leave Earth awakens a boldness in her. She applies, and against all odds, she’s selected to train at Houston’s Johnson Space Center in the summer of 1980.
There, Joan is joined by a group of fellow trainees, each one unforgettable in their own way. Hank Redmond, a charismatic Top Gun pilot. John Griffin, a calm and supportive scientist. Lydia Danes, determined and unafraid to speak her mind. Donna Fitzgerald, whose kindness hides quiet struggles. And Vanessa Ford, a magnetic aeronautical engineer who can fix anything and might just challenge Joan’s understanding of love and connection.
As this diverse group prepares for their missions, friendships form in the pressure cooker of space training, and Joan begins to open herself up in ways she never has before. Love, ambition, and the weight of expectations collide as the group edges closer to launch.
Everything changes in December 1984, during mission STS-LR9, when the risks of space exploration become all too real.
Atmosphere is a novel about reaching for more, even when it scares you. It’s about the relationships that give life gravity and the courage to step into the unknown. Taylor Jenkins Reid delivers a story that’s deeply human and rich with emotion, one that will stay with you long after the final page. If you’re choosing just one book to read this summer, this should be it. Then, when you’re done, go outside and look up at the stars.
