Coming Up Sunday: Innovators, Inventors & Their Authors

A Face the Nation tradition - the book panel! The 15th annual Library of Congress National Book Festival takes place this weekend where more than a hundred authors will gather in DC to sign their books and meet their readers. During our show on Sunday, we'll take a closer look at four of these authors who have chronicled innovators and inventors who have helped to shape the world as we know it today.

The second man to walk on the moon, astronaut Buzz Aldrin has recently set his sights on another space endeavor -- Mars. Author of Mission to Mars, and most recently a children's book, Welcome to Mars, Aldrin is making his first appearance on Face the Nation since 1969 to discuss his latest work and plan to send humans to Mars by 2035, exactly 66 years after he stepped foot on the moon.

Freelance writer Rachel Swaby was inspired to write Headstrong: 52 Women Who Changed Science-and the World after reading an obituary that downplayed one woman's contributions to science. In 2013, the New York Times ran an eulogy for Yvonne Brill, which opened with, "She made a mean beef stroganoff, followed her husband from job to job and took eight years off from work to raise three children." She was also a renowned rocket scientist, which was buried further down in the obituary. This led Swaby to chronicle the lives and careers of women scientists sometimes overlooked in their accomplishments. She'll join our panel to give us a glimpse into the lives of some of these women.

Celebrated Historian David McCullough dove into the world of flight in The Wright Brothers where he explored the many attempts (and failures) by the brothers to get their plane airborne. He also explored the personal lives of the brothers from Dayton, Ohio and how they beat out the competition to become the true pioneers of flight. McCullough will join us to discuss the Wright brothers and their famous first flight at Kitty Hawk.

In The Innovators: How a Group of Hackers, Geniuses, and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution, Walter Isaacson wrote about the tech geniuses who opened the floodgates for the internet era, including Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. But his work is not just about the internet. Isaacson also pays homage to Ada Lovelace who pioneered computer programming in the mid-nineteenth century.

We hope you will join us to hear more from these accomplished authors.