Strange Angel - The Otherworldly Life of Rocket Scientist John Whiteside Parsons (Paperback, New Ed)

'Forget geek stereotypes. Parsons' life seems straight out of a Hollywood thriller ... Pendle's book leaves us with a taste of genius's energy and fragility' Los Angeles Magazine 'You couldn't make it up' Physics World 'As a history of space travel, STRANGE ANGEL is a cornerstone ... Highly recommended' Ray Bradbury BRILLIANT ROCKET SCIENTIST KILLED IN EXPLOSION screamed the front-page headline of the Los Angeles Times on 18 June 1952. John Parsons, a maverick rocketeer whose work had helped transform the rocket from a derided sci-fi plotline into a reality, was at first mourned as a tragically young victim of mishandled chemicals. But as reporters dug deeper a shocking story emerged. Parsons had been performing occult rites and summoning spirits as a follower of Alesteir Crowley. George Pendle tells Parsons' extraordinary life story for the first time. Fuelled from childhood by dreams of space flight, Parsons was a crucial innovator during rocketry's birth. But his visionary imagination also led him into the occult community thriving in 1930s Los Angeles, and when fantasy's pull became stronger than reality, he lost both his work and his wife. Parsons was just emerging from his personal underworld when he died - aged thirty-seven. In Strange Angel, Pendle recovers a fascinating life and explores the unruly consequences of genius.

General

Imprint:	Weidenfeld & Nicolson
Country of origin:	United Kingdom
Release date:	April 2006
Authors:	George Pendle
Dimensions:	198 x 130 x 24mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Paperback - B-format
Pages:	350
Edition:	New Ed
ISBN-13:	978-0-7538-2065-0
Categories:	Books > Language & Literature > Biography & autobiography > General Books > Professional & Technical > Other technologies > Space science > Astronautics Books > Biography > General
LSN:	0-7538-2065-X
Barcode:	9780753820650

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