Marc Garneau Monday, November 18, 2024 at 7:30 PM PST

× Marc Garneau never expected to become an astronaut. But then he saw an ad in the paper. NASA was inviting two Canadians to fly on its 1984 space shuttle to thank us for designing the rocket’s robotic arm. His application successful, Garneau became the first Canadian in space. Twenty-four years later, Garneau made history yet again, becoming the first astronaut to be elected as a Member of Parliament.

In his memoir,  A Most Extraordinary Ride: Space, Politics, and the Pursuit of a Canadian Dream , Garneau chronicles his improbable ascent from a mischievous teenager and rebellious naval midshipman to a decorated astronaut and statesman who has represented Canada on the world stage. With candour and humour, the Montreal based Garneau describes the highs and lows of his life and career, including the awe he experienced first seeing the earth from space, the tragic loss of his first wife to mental illness and suicide, sailing across the Atlantic and back in a sailboat called "the Pickle," and witnessing the tragedy of the doomed shuttle Challenger.

He writes about serving as Minister of Foreign Affairs during some of the biggest events of the past decade: the onset of one of the worst pandemics in modern times; the arbitrary detention of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor by China; the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban; and the death of 85 Canadian citizens and permanent residents aboard Ukrainian Airlines Flight 752, shot down by Iran.

Honest and illuminating, A Most Extraordinary Ride  comes out in October.