“Tom Wolfe at his very best” (The New York Times Book Review), The Right Stuff is the basis for the 1983 Oscar-winning film of the same name and the eight-part Disney+ miniseries. Reissued for today’s reader with a cover by the renowned artist Seymour Chwast and an introduction by the New York Times bestselling author Robin Sloan. What does it take to be an astronaut?First published in 1979, Tom Wolfe’s astounding book The Right Stuff answers this question and more, exploring both the mental and the physical sacrifices that must be made by individuals entering space. Wolfe tells the stories of the pilots, engineers, and astronauts involved in Project Mercury (1958–1963), the United States’ first human spaceflight program. A breathtaking epic, a magnificent adventure story, and an investigation into the heroism and courage of the first American astronauts to conquer space, The Right Stuff is a true American classic.