- Hardcover: 368 pages
- Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson; First Edition edition (14 July 2005)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0297848534
- ISBN-13: 978-0297848530
- Product Dimensions: 23.4 x 16.6 x 3.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 488,250 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Review
'Pendle's superbly detailed and addictively readable book makes the reader fall in love with these young men's energy and enthusiasm.' (DAILY TELEGRAPH )
'...readable and engrossing.' (Bryan Appleyard LITERARY REVIEW )
'You couldn't make it up.' (PHYSICS WORLD )
'It's a cracker, that rarest of things a popular science book that's a page turner too' (popularscience.co.uk )
'elegantly written... Pendle with his graceful, measured prose... skilfully steers us through the quagmire of Parson's personal life' (THE OBSERVER )
'fascinating... we are introduced to a surreal 1930s world where dreams of space flight were inspired by popular science fiction...' (FOCUS )
'entertaining... intriguing...' (CHEMISTRY WORLD )
'...readable and engrossing.' (Bryan Appleyard LITERARY REVIEW )
'You couldn't make it up.' (PHYSICS WORLD )
'It's a cracker, that rarest of things a popular science book that's a page turner too' (popularscience.co.uk )
'elegantly written... Pendle with his graceful, measured prose... skilfully steers us through the quagmire of Parson's personal life' (THE OBSERVER )
'fascinating... we are introduced to a surreal 1930s world where dreams of space flight were inspired by popular science fiction...' (FOCUS )
'entertaining... intriguing...' (CHEMISTRY WORLD )
Bryan Appleyard, LITERARY REVIEW
'...readable and engrossing.'
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
How has this astonishing story remained so little known for so long? The self -taught rocket scientist who dabbled, and dabbled ever more deeply, in the dark arts of "magick", and became Aleister Crowley's principal acolyte in the USA, is one of the most intriguing characters of 20th century science. Like Isaac Newton, who was also fascinated by the occult, Jack Parsons was a man of boundless curiosity who - in all areas of his extraordinary professional and private life - thought and did the unthinkable until his untimely death in a mysterious explosion in 1952. George Pendle is an intelligent and lively writer who takes us down a hundred weird byways of Parsons' life without ever sensationalising his subject. Not that he has to: Parsons was sensational, both as a scientist and free spirit. Recommended.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
An intelligent, well written and non-partisan assessment of rocket pioneer Jack Parsons. Pendle weaves together a myriad of sources, print and original interviews, as well as providing a full background to rocketry, Los Angles and Crowley and the OTO. Crucially, he does not take sides. Fascinating to discover that rocket science was once considered taboo by the scientific community. The result is a terrific read - it really is a page-turner.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
As someone who has long been interested in rocketry, I had been aware of the pioneering work of Robert Goddard and how that work was eventually superseded by a variety of pioneers in the West. Having grown up near Pasadena, I was very aware of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory there and its pivotal role in space exploration. I have also read a number of biographies that mention unexpected explosions at Cal Tech. Having long been a science fiction fan, I know the writings of many of the classic authors . . . but not much about them.
What a nice surprise it was when I stumbled onto Strange Angel, which provides much helpful perspective about all those interests of mine in the context of the short and explosive life of John Whiteside Parsons. George Pendle is quite successful at capturing the times -- distrust of rocketry as a research area, paranoia about Communism, fascination among the wealthy with the occult and the undeniable appeal for some of unrestrained sexual activity.
Beyond that slice of time, the book also appealed to my sense of how many new sciences develop . . . by lots of painful trial and error. I was especially intrigued by the problems of creating stable solid rocket fuels that wouldn't fail in painful ways. Mr. Pendle also does a fine job of explaining how the early trial-and-error pioneers are eventually superseded by those who can develop the theory and practice in more advanced ways.
John Whiteside Parsons lived a life that screamed for a strong hand to take him in the right direction . . . but which wasn't available. There's a classic element of human tragedy to the story that will intrigue almost any reader . . . and leave the reader with a vastly enlarged sense of what the human mind can contain.
For those who are interested in the occult, they will probably be disappointed in the book for its taking a neutral tone in regard to this subject. For those who prefer a strong religious perspective on every spiritual issue, they will be disappointed that the author isn't overtly disapproving of Mr. Parsons' involvement with the occult.
Ultimately, biographies rise or fall on the intrigue that the life of the subject presents to the reader. It's hard to imagine a more intriguing (but not exemplary) life than the one described in Strange Angel.
Don't miss this story!
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