A fascinating glimpse into the past, Gail Briggs Nolen’s ‘Memories of Merritt Island’ records the history of Merritt Island, Florida when two families homesteaded on land which is now part of the Kennedy Space Center. The collection of family memories transports readers back to a time before the rockets came, offering a charming excursion both in pictures and in words into the lives of two families of pioneers: the Briggs and Benecke families.