Hidden Figures Book and Movie Discussion Guide

Ten questions each for the book and film, Hidden Figures.

Hidden Figures: The Untold Story of the African American Women Who Helped Win the Space Race
Author: Margot Lee Shetterly
Publisher: William Collins

The book Hidden Figures: The Untold Story of the African American Women Who Helped Win the Space Race is more factual than the film. It is more like a textbook with scientific information about aviation and civil rights. The author demonstrates how segregation at NACA (now NASA) compared and contrasted to civil rights issues of the larger society. The book would be a fantastic resource for civil rights studies as it is all nonfiction.

The movie is a fictionalized version of the nonfiction book and is about 74% accurate. Students should notice what was exaggerated for dramatic effect to create the film.