An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth

What Going to Space Taught Me About Ingenuity, Determination, and Being Prepared for Anything

By: Chris Hadfield

Narrated by: Chris Hadfield

Travel to space and back with astronaut Chris Hadfield's "enthralling" bestseller as your eye-opening guide (Slate).

Colonel Chris Hadfield has spent decades training as an astronaut and has logged nearly 4000 hours in space. During this time he has broken into a Space Station with a Swiss army knife, disposed of a live snake while piloting a plane, and been temporarily blinded while clinging to the exterior of an orbiting spacecraft. The secret to Col. Hadfield's success—and survival—is an unconventional philosophy he learned at NASA: prepare for the worst—and enjoy every moment of it.

In An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth, Col. Hadfield takes listeners deep into his years of training and space exploration to show how to make the impossible possible. Through eye-opening, entertaining stories filled with the adrenaline of launch, the mesmerizing wonder of spacewalks, and the measured, calm responses mandated by crises, he explains how conventional wisdom can get in the way of achievement—and happiness. His own extraordinary education in space has taught him some counterintuitive lessons: don't visualize success, do care what others think, and always sweat the small stuff.

You might never be able to build a robot, pilot a spacecraft, make a music video or perform basic surgery in zero gravity like Col. Hadfield. But his vivid and refreshing insights will teach you how to think like an astronaut, and will change, completely, the way you view life on Earth—especially your own.

"Hadfield proves himself to be not only a fierce explorer of the universe, but also a deeply thoughtful explorer of the human condition."—Maria Popova, Brain Pickings

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2013 Chris Hadfield (P)2013 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

A Slate Staff Pick for Best Books 2013

"A very human glance into a rarified world.... The vacuum of space is unforgiving and brutal. Life on earth isn't easy, either. Mr. Hadfield has genuinely and refreshingly increased our understanding of how to thrive in both places."—The Wall Street Journal

"Hadfield is a genius, a man of science and technology and no first-timer to the universe."—New York Post

"A satisfying behind-the-scenes look at the life of an astronaut.... A page-turning memoir of life as a decorated astronaut."—Kirkus Reviews

A favorite among my friends

“Aim to be a zero”, “sweat the small stuff”, “focus on what can kill you next”, are among the new phrases that me and my friends live buy. “He wasn’t aiming to be a zero” we’ll say when someone’s “clever” idea causes others a lot of extra work to fix. But beyond the valuable life lessons, Hadfield draws a captivating case for space exploration and shows us what the life of an astronaut is like.

Very interesting and inspirational story

I saw Chris on Star Talk, ended up buying this audio book shortly thereafter, and have listened to it twice since then. It's an awesome book.

Winderful

Loved it! Great wisdom on character and beautiful imagery of course. I might listen a second time.

Amazing story

Great story and life lessons. Great delivery by author as well! One of the best listen and read this year.

Life-Changing

What did you love best about An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth?

There's a tremendous amount of life experience to be learned from Hadfield's book. Pay particular attention to the parts of the book where he talks about being a -1, 0, or +1. Learning the skill of humility will change your life.

Did I Really Want to Know This?

The life of an astronaut is not the romantic life fiction books tell us. This is the real life story of a man who wanted to go into space since the age of 9. He, like many of us, watched Neil Armstrong take the first steps on the moon. This inspiration led Chris Hadfield to live his life and his family's life, to accomplish this goal.
Chris gives us all the minutiae you ever wanted to know. Details about ones bodily fluids etc and what happens to these functions in space. Go into space at your own peril!
The book was interesting although I wished for a reader other than the author. Never-the-less I'm glad I listened.

a heartwarming, insightful, and inspiring book

a heartwarming, insightful, and inspiring book. wish I read it sooner. Chris gives a lot of no nonsense lessons and a great perspective that helps the reader gain insight into what's important and how to go about dealing with goals and problems

I will listen to this again

It is like he is just sitting in the room telling his story. The first half is so telling of his way of growing himself, the second half is his story of space that is absolutely fantastic to listen too.

he has it all figured out.

a good book that teaches you how to live. i highly recommend it and will listen regularly to remind myself.

Journey to be a man

It is perfect guide to be able to work , learn and unlearn in today's life .