An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth: What Going to Space Taught Me About Ingenuity, Determination, and Being Prepared for Anything

In An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth, former CSA astronaut Chris Hadfield shares a variety of tales from his extensive career both on and off the planet, as well as the personal philosophy that helped him through it all. Hadfield is the kind of individual that you want as role model your children. His work ethic is exemplary, and he emphasizes the critical nature of ongoing personal education and development as key to his success. Don't determine your self worth based on where you end up, he says, but on the effort you will put in to get there. If something is worth doing, it is worth committing to and doing well, regardless of the payoff. Perhaps not revolutionary ideas in and of themselves, but backed by the life story of someone who has embraced these principles and embodied them. Hadfield's career is a feel good story for anyone who believes in the power of hard work and education. While An Astronaut's Guide spends a lot of time on the author's attitudes and ethics, it's by no means a self help book. The text is also a candid biography, giving great insight into the years of development that went into building the career of a star (no pun intended) astronaut. Hadfield reminisces on his youth, his time as a military test pilot, and his many additional years training at NASA before ever reaching space. We learn how the intense commitment involved can affect personal relationships and family dynamics. It becomes clear that today's select few astronauts represent, in many ways, the pinnacle of humanity: it's a lifestyle that demands levels of intelligence, dedication, and both physical and mental training that very few of us could hope to successfully achieve. Chris Hadfield first reached fame several years ago through a series of educational and entertaining social media postings made from the ISS. We learn that these were motivated by his love of the space program, and, with the help of his son back on Earth, he wanted to do his part to boost public awareness and interest. The videos became a hit and internet stardom followed. I'm the kind of person who finds any story about life beyond Earth hard to pass up, simply for the curiosity and wonder they evoke. From the vastness of the cosmos to the minutia of how to brush your teeth successfully in zero gravity, it's all fascinating stuff, and Hadfield, who flew on three separate occasions, brings these anecdotes in spades. The same attitude that lead him to educational social media carries through in his writing, and we're gifted with numerous stories that run the gamut from the profound and enlightening to the humorous. The author is consistently candid about the astronaut experience, and these sections proved particularly hard to put down. All in all, it's difficult not to recommend this book. If you're already a fan of space travel, or the space program, you will receive a bevy of stories and insights from a man who spent decades at NASA and commanded the ISS. And if you aren't a space enthusiast yet, you might just be one by the end. But even without all of the fantastic anecdotes, Chris Hadfield is still an eminently likable and admirable personality with a lot of unique life experience to share. Worth reading whether you're an aspiring astronaut, or just aspiring to become a more enlightened human being.

Colonel Chris Hadfield (who made that “Space Oddity” video while aboard the ISS) talks about his path to becoming an astronaut due to the right combination of talent, diligence, patience, goal-oriented decision making, personal philosophy – and, of course, luck. Hadfield also talks about his life as an astronaut – and how much of an astronaut’s time is spent on earth-bound work and study; being in space is only a small (but certainly rewarding) part on an astronaut’s career. As Hadfield wrote a serious and informative book, the book avoids any exaggerated tone of excitement and has few humorous observations or anecdotes. As implied by the book’s title, the book is partly description & explanation and partly philosophy. So it’s a good book and an easy read (but not a fast read).

I first listened to this on audible and loved Hadfield’s subtle Canadian accent but I also loved the content of the book and wanted a physical copy. This is the best space book I’ve read and possibly the best book of advice on living on earth that I’ve ever read. Forget self help books. If those are your thing just put them down and read this, because it’s full of wisdom and humility on every page for absolutely anyone, whether you’re a new astronaut or a new mom or a student or explorer. I would recommend this to anyone. For example, I wrote a book about my two months on bedrest in a hospital in 2016. “Notes on a Hospitalized Pregnant Woman” was about preeclampsia and the effects of a hard pregnancy and hours in a hospital room on the body and psyche. I didn’t include it in the book but there were months of rehabilitation where I had to really get a taste of what it was like to be an old fuddyduddy, from the sloshing stomach feeling when I ran again to weak limbs and vertigo. WELL this astronaut describes his return from five months on the ISS and I couldn’t help but think “I felt this exact same way”, and the whole book was like this, from keeping your ego in check to the power of “negative thinking” and appreciating every small detail and every so-called small event and responsibility in ones life. This is the zen of being an astronaut and the zen of being a human being. Read it. Ps. Side note: I want to add that the space program has accomplished- for science, medicine, the environment- what we could only dream of achieving on earth...through research for space and on the ISS, Hadfield points out how much invention and innovation has occurred with a program that many consider “too expensive” or obsolete. Even many liberals say this today and it is one of the most irritatingly ignorant things I’ve heard again and again, while billions are thrown into the military industrial complex, the actual cost of NASA programs is pennies compared to so many other expenditures people make on a daily basis, from weapons, to beer to fricken chewing gum.... Hadfield has a lot of detailed examples of all this and I’ll let you read for yourself and subsequently curse the fact that all astronauts rely solely on vintage Russian spacecraft to get to the ISS today.

Before I give a review I have to give a bit of a background. I had been working for the same company for five years going no where. Mapping floodplains and helping supervise a call center...basically I wasn't anywhere close to where I wanted to be in my life. Approaching 28 and in a serious relationship, I was focused on the future. I had never tried to do anything too difficult since I never thought I would succeed. I forget the specifics as to how I learned about Chris Hadfield but I found him truly inspiring. As you'll learn in his book, his improbable journey from a dreaming child (before Canada had a space program) to an astronaut helped change the course of my life. Learning about his story helped me reflect on my own life and attitude. I quit work the same month he returned from space and went back to school for Computer Engineering. This major causes me to face a lot of my fears in math, physics, and programming. I have wanted to learn all of these things but never thought I would succeed. I am still terrified...but it's different now. It's really all thanks to Chris Hadfield being willing to share his life and his family supporting him through his career (and Evan Hadfield for encouraging the use of social media). An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth is the first book I have ever pre-ordered. I was so excited from the purchase that I had to 'tweet' Mr. Hadfield. I was star struck when he responded. It took me three days to finish the book. Next, my fiance and I were extremely lucky to meet him at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in DC. I just expected him to sign the book and move on to the next one. The line was long and he had been on the road for a while. However, he took the time to ask a few questions of everyone, shake their hand, and even take a picture with them. Now finally to the book. It was great. An easy read for sure but I welcomed it. The honesty and openness was refreshing. I enjoyed his new perspectives on attitude, approaching difficult tasks, pursuing goals, and more. There are a lot of great lessons to read in the chapters of this book and they are delivered by someone with a lot of humility. The best part is just getting to know him better as a person and the fascinating life he has led. I should note that I may be biased since I am Canadian.

If you're on a flight from NYC to SFO and planned to spend that time reading this, then you're going to need another book. Because this one is so compelling you're going to finish it with nearly two hours to spare! As other reviewers have commented, this isn't really an autobiography and it isn't really a life lesson book. It is an amalgam of both, wrapped around a fascinating topic - made infinitely more accessible by the style and nature of the authors natural desire to learn and to educate others without preaching (although a number of times, it is referenced with humour that maybe the author's children don't share the same opinion about his preaching). Unlike self-help books, it doesn't give you a boring list of things to run away and practice every day, or mantras to write on your mirror. And unlike autobiographies, it doesn't spend hours wading through mundane elements of a persons life. It is just a sensible "my opinion on how to live on Earth" that happens to be written by a guy who spent a fair bit of time not on it. Anyone with a fascination of the behind the scenes of space exploration will enjoy this without having to take away any of those lessons. The life lessons are a bonus. Those who are looking for a different perspective on how to tackle problem solving and personal growth will also get plenty from this, and as a bonus - will get an introduction to life as an astronaut as well.

This book has 2 themes working alongside each other. First of all it is an account of the challenges, experiences, and wonders of being an astronaut. Chris Hadfield does an amazing job of describing everything from the tedious tasks that goes into preparation for a mission to the weird and surprising things that goes on in zero-gravity. He goes into a LOT of details about both Shuttle and Soyuz hardware. And I loved it. The second theme is a more philosophical life lesson. A part that I both appreciated and got a little annoyed by. While I loved the mantra "Sweat and smile at the small stuff" and see great potential of implementing that in my own life, the book sometimes had a lecturing tone of voice that rubbed me the wrong way. But all in all - a great and recommendable read.

This is a great book showing that old school wisdom works with a job that has in immense amount of risk. Things like the power of negative thinking, humility, team mentality, personal preparedness etc. You hear these types of things often around the “hyper productive” crowd. But the stakes often aren’t as high. Great read. Now I want to go to space.

Chris Hadfield did a very good job of taking us through his career in the form of a personal memoir, and the book focuses on character and the opportunity inside the Space Program for Leadership and what Leadership really means and where it can take you. His revelations about the little known side effects of prolonged space travel and the startling revelations of seeing the Universe from that perspective were rewarding and they fired the imagination. His detailed recollections of tumbling to earth in the Russian return vehicle were quite spellbinding. Chris has lived an extraordinary life and he brings us inside his world to a perspective very few will ever see or experience. I do wish Chris explored more about his inner life relative to the experiences he had, and how it shaped his views of God, our place in the Cosmos, what goals he thinks are realistic for us, and what goals are not. I could not help but walk away from this book thinking that the challenges of deep space flight are far more formidable than we give them credit for. All in all, a solid book - a good read, and I thank Chris for the effort.

highlights the importance of being prepared for all possibilities with analogies of his experiences as an astronaut. Very interesting, exciting and motivating stories

The inspiring professional and personal life of a man who has achieved what is - probably - the most exclusive success: being an astronaut and walk in space. Chris Hadfield narrates the different steps in his career, and the professional and human challenges he had to face in order to climb to the stars. A very determined yet humble man, he makes no attempt to deny how hard and demanding it all was, but also how good he turned out to be in all that was asked to him, thanks to his talent - of course - but mostly to his dedication. There is not a hint of arrogance in this, however it is undoubtable that, to do what Hadfield has done, you can't be an ordinary person. His descriptions of life and work on board of the International Space Station - and of the travels to/from the ISS - are particularly vivid and interesting, going way beyond the usual chatting about how astronauts pee in zero-weight conditions. Very wise reflections are offered, in addition, on the very practical and progress-wise outcomes of the activities carried out on the ISS. I find the stories of such highly-skilled men and women to be incredibly inspiring. Most of the human beings will never be asked to study such high-level technical topics and do terribly risky stuff, yet it is mind-opening to consider how deep and how far we humans can go, if we use our skills and are determined to excel. Very recommended reading. P.S. This man recorded "Space Oddity" on the ISS (YouTube it, it's gorgeous) with permission by David Bowie... Aren't you curious to know more about such an incredible person?

A really interesting read not only because of the anecdotes about life in space but mainly because it underlines how much hard work is important to every undertaking but that sometimes luck plays a role. The lessons contained within this book don't only apply to those aiming for the stars but can be used by us mere mortals in our everyday lives and jobs. The explanations and examples are original, clear and concise (I especially appreciated the chapters on "the power of negative thinking" and "being a zero"). It's amazing how much Chris Hadfield sacrificed in order to achieve his objectives. A real Canadian hero!

Chris Handfield take you to an easy and amazing book to his experiences in space, it really shows me a new perspective to dream. English is not my first language so this book helps me to practice and now some new things I did not consider an astronaut face. Is a good book, one of my new favorites and it really makes a good time to read and learn.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this book! Chris Hadfield's every decision to propel himself closer to his dream of being an astronaut is inspiring. I often cite this book as one of my favourites (I am fascinated by humans being/living in space) and it is one I reread when the mood takes me.