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Return to earth Review

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(More customer reviews)Among all of the Apollo astronauts, where unusual personalities abound, Buzz Aldrin may be the most singularly unusual. He was also one of the most important. Selected in the third group of NASA astronauts in 1963, Aldrin was unique because of his Ph.D. in astronautics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He had written his dissertation on orbital rendezvous and he applied this knowledge to solving one of the principal riddles of the space program, how to accomplish rendezvous and docking of two spacecraft in Earth orbit. Acquiring the nickname "Dr. Rendezvous" from his fellow astronauts, during Project Gemini Aldrin became one of the key figures working on the problem of spacecraft rendezvous in Earth or lunar orbit and docking them together for space flight. Without solutions to such problems Apollo could not have been successfully completed. Aldrin got a chance to fly on Gemini XII during November 11-15, 1966, and demonstrated the success of his rendezvous and docking work for all to see; he manually recomputed all the rendezvous maneuvers after the on-board radar failed
Despite that critical work, Aldrin is mostly remembered for becoming the second man on the Moon, after Neil Armstrong, on the Apollo 11 mission. On July 20, 1969, he and Armstrong spent about 20 hours on the lunar surface. This mission made Aldrin, along with Armstrong and the third astronaut on the mission, Michael Collins, world figures. Aldrin chronicled in "Return to Earth" the flight of Apollo 11 and in many ways it was a courageous book. Aldrin had a delicate psyche. He was an intellectual who had a personal bent toward philosophy, reflectiveness, and sensitivity. Pushed to the brink by his overbearing father, Aldrin sought approval by overachieving. But he could never accomplish enough to satisfy his father and his failure to become the first person on the surface of the Moon signaled a fundamental failure, something he was spring-loaded to adopt anyway because of years of conditioning by his father.
In "Return to Earth" Aldrin recounts the intense years working on the Moon landing program, the feelings of insecurity he always carried with him, and the excesses of celebrity. Aldrin explores in this book his experiences in the aftermath of Apollo 11; the deep depression, alcoholism, "nervous breakdown," and divorce after his return to Earth. It is a confessional and courageous memoir. It is also a powerful and moving story, one that has not been as appreciated as it should be, and helps to open the door to understanding some of the stresses on those associated with Apollo program. They accomplished a remarkable feat--perhaps the greatest in human history--but the price they paid was great as well. One cannot complete the reading of this book without gaining a new appreciation for Buzz Aldrin and his unique and exceptionally productive career.

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Norman Mailer, MoonFire: The Epic Journey of Apollo 11 Review

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(More customer reviews)I got this book from Amazon (and was thrilled to get a copy as high up as number 216!) because I wanted my kids to have a way of remembering one of mankind's greatest accomplishments. Its hard to believe that it is now over 40 years since we went to the moon, and have yet to go any further. It is also hard to imagine us doing anything like that today, which makes it all the more important to remember what this country was once capable of. This book is a magnificent tribute to the entire Apollo program. The book is immense in size and weight and extremely well made. The photos are outstanding and particularly well printed, the paper is very heavy stock and the book is superbly bound with needle and thread. The plastic box that the book is placed in may be a bit of a gimmick, but it does make it stand out. The icing on the cake is the accompanying framed photo, one of the most famous of all time. It is so well reproduced that it seems to glow, and having it signed by Buzz Aldrin makes it something special. It is great to be able to tell my kids that the person standing on the moon in the photo is the same person who signed the picture on the back "just for them". Given that this edition is limited to just 1957 copies and that Amazon discounts it by 20%, this is a remarkable bargain. I highly, highly recommend it. Grab it while it is still available.

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And the Moon came nearer... To commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing, TASCHEN has paired Norman Mailer's seminal text with spectacular photography from the archives of NASA and LIFE magazine and many other sources to create a unique tribute to the defining scientific mission of our era. It has been called the single most historic event of the 20th century: On July 20, 1969 Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins met John F. Kennedy's call for a manned Moon landing by the end of the 1960s. A decade of tests and training, a staff of 400,000 engineers and scientists, and a $24 billion budget climaxed with the launch of the most powerful rocket ever built, and an unprecedented event watched by millions the world over. And nobody captured the men, the mood, and the machinery like Norman Mailer.One of the greatest writers of his generation, Mailer was hired by LIFE to cover the Moon shot. His three-part feature, the longest nonfiction piece LIFE had published, was later developed into his book Of A Fire On The Moon. This seminal work of cultural analysis and philosophy is reproduced here for the first time ever. Whether exploring the science and philosophical implications of space travel, or the psychology of the men involved from rocket engineer Wernher von Braun, through the NASA support staff, to the three astronauts Mailer's provocative and trenchant insights remain unsurpassed in defining this epochal event.Illustrating Mailer's gripping text are hundreds of the greatest photographs and film stills from the NASA vaults, magazine archives, and private collections. Many previously unpublished, these images trace the development of the agency and its mission, from early experimentation to that breathtaking instant when Man first stepped on the Moon s surface, and the world's jubilant reaction. An original introduction by Colum McCann and captions by Apollo 11 experts explain the history and science behind the images, citing the mission log, post-flight interviews with the astronauts, and publications of the day.* Limited Edition of 1957 copies, No. 1 1957. * Each copy includes a Plexiglas-framed, numbered, ready-to-hang, archival-quality photographic print, produced using the revolutionary new Skia printing technique, and signed by Buzz Aldrin. This shot of Buzz Aldrin standing on the Moon, with fellow astronaut Neil Armstrong reflected in his helmet's visor, is the definitive image of the Apollo 11 mission, and one of the most famous and iconic photos ever taken.* XL format, includes 4 foldouts. Presented in a custom box with a plexiglass convex window. * Original photographic materials restored to the highest standards. * Print dimensions: 32.5 x 40 cm (12.8 x 15.7 in.) * Also available in Lunar Rock Edition, limited to 12 copies, No. 1958 1969, each with a specimen of extremely rare Moon meteorite.

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Light This Candle: The Life & Times of Alan Shepard--America's First Spaceman Review

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(More customer reviews)To anyone but a true student of spaceflight history, this might be regarded as a superb biography of an extraordinary man, and it certainly comes very close. Neal Thompson has a punchy, smooth-running style, which obviously reflects his lengthy career as a professional journalist, but just like a journalist it seems he kept his manuscript to himself and well under wraps, and I believe this has proved a sad downfall for an otherwise excellent book. People who know their spaceflight stuff are thick on the ground, but it is very obvious that no one was consulted in order to simply verify the so-called facts about Shepard's NASA career in this book. There are so many elementary errors inherent in this part of the story that it must call into question the reliability of other areas such as his military service, and he deserves better.
The author's descriptions of early spacecraft are incorrect; so too his explanations of the dynamics of space flight and the space environment. I know helicopter pilot Jim Lewis well enough to say that he would be absolutely furious with Thompson's baseless assumption that Gus Grissom blamed Lewis for nearly letting him drown after the hatch blew on his spacecraft. Quite the contrary - Lewis was elsewhere making a valiant but ultimately unsuccessful attempt to save Liberty Bell 7. Any fundamental study of this dramatic event would reveal that Lewis's helicopter did not in fact retrieve Grissom as stated in the book, and his was not the only helicopter on the scene - there were actually three involved. I also feel that far more effort should have been made to research the Mercury flight of Scott Carpenter, rather than reiterating bitter and biased recollections dominating Chris Kraft's account of this flight in his own book. Carpenter successfully brought home a flawed, badly malfunctioning spacecraft, but where is this story? It seems a much-misrepresented confrontation between two personalities is a better scenario to present than the program-saving heroics and expertise of a gentle, courageous astronaut.
The author says he elicited the help of Alan Shepard's family in writing this book, and while I do not doubt the veracity of this statement, I wonder if they feel betrayed by many of the vapid sex "revelations" he felt obliged to relate, which only serve to make this book a poor man's "Right Stuff." I, for one, did not care to know the intimate details of Alan and Louise Shepard's first night together as man and wife. This was just guesswork, voyeuristic journalism at its most revolting, and has no place in such a serious biography. It would also, I am sure, have proved very distressing to the daughters, and such odious reporting is precisely why Shepard would not divulge his life story before he died, and why family members have never cooperated with journalists or biographers before now - and probably never will again. The author also rebuts the whole Shepard/Glenn conflict matrix he carefully makes throughout the book by saying that Shepard was panicked into seeking Glenn's counsel on a delicate matter. This goes absolutely against the grain of both personalities, as pointed out numerous times in his own book. Research and sources please, Mr. Author, not the presentation of presumptions as facts based simply on third-party and questionable hearsay.
My sincere wish is that the author had just allowed someone with a solid knowledge of spaceflight dynamics and history to read the text before he rushed this book into print, because the presence of numerous errors and typos only serves to diminish the full impact of what might have been a truly good biography.
An Australian called Clive James once penned a great book called "Unreliable Memoirs," and I'm afraid this is an alternate title I would have to apply to this book. Nevertheless, it still merits 4 out of 5 for readability, and for finally bringing us the incredible (albeit author-flawed) story of America's first man in space. We can only hope that a corrective rewrite is in the offing. Then, I'm sure, I can probably add that fifth star to the overall rating.

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First Indian on the Moon Review

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(More customer reviews)Sherman Alexi is an in-your-face poet, there's no doubt about it. He has a voice that demands to be heard, and you will listen, even unwillingly. His style is unique, mixing short, terse lines of verse alternating with long lines of prose that carry contrasts of charged emotion against the calming voice of reason. It is not an easy read. There are harsh truths, but truths that need to be addressed and heeded. His voice is the voice of many and the voice of few, but all demand you hear them. Powerful and moving.When I finished reading it, I felt as if I'd been shot in the back with many arrows and was left carrying around holes in my heart.

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First on the Moon Review

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(More customer reviews)Apollo 11 was the fifth manned Apollo flight, third Apollo flight to the moon and the first mission to land two men, Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong, on the surface of the moon. This book, written for ten to twelve year olds, describes the adventure of Apollo 11 from the launch, through the docking, moon landing, and return to earth from the point of view of Buzz Aldrin's oldest child Jan Aldrin who along with NASA chief historian Roger Launius, helped write this book.
Unlike a lot of books on the moon landings that cover in great detail the training, flight experience, marriages, etc of the astronauts, this book refreshingly opens with Buzz Aldrin and his daughter standing on top of the launch tower viewing the rocket (Saturn V) that will take him, Neil Armstrong and Mike Collins to the moon. The book then proceeds to the liftoff, docking with the Lunar Module, voyage to the Moon, lunar landing, the voyage home, and splashdown. Throughout the book, there are numerous sidebars, which describe in more detail, various aspects of the mission. For example, there are small sections, on "Becoming an Astronaut," "Space Food," "The Saturn V" and many others as well. In addition to the text, there are many high quality photographs that bring to life the first moon landing.
While this book is geared to ten to twelve year olds, I feel that many adults will also find this book enjoyable as well, because of its well written text and great photographs.

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Tayos Gold: The Archives of Atlantis Review

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(More customer reviews)Great account of Stan Hall's expeditions to Ecuador in search for the lost library of gold tablets and his relations with Moricz in the search.

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In 1976, Scottish engineer Stan Hall organized a landmark expedition to the caves of the Tayos Indians in Ecuador, involving a dozen institutions, joint Special Forces, and astronaut professor Neil Armstrong as Honorary President and participant. Hall was driven by curiosity about Erich von Däniken's report of a Metal Library allegedly found in the caves by investigator Juan Moricz in the mid-1960s (published in von Däniken's 1972 blockbuster Gold of the Gods). This idea was considered unorthodox in the absence of any ancient written script in South America. In Hall's odyssey into the heart of global enigmas he researches• The origins of mankind • Atlantis • Ptolemy's lost city of Cattigara • The sudden rise and fall of wonder civilizationsThis journey ended with his identification of Atlantis and Cattigara, and the entrance to the Metal Library along the Pastaza River in Ecuador. Imagination, action and danger combine explosively in the story of this spectacular British-Ecuadorian expedition to the Tayos Caves of Ecuador.

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NASA Apollo 11: An Insight into the Hardware from the First Manned Mission to Land on the Moon Review

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(More customer reviews)After the seemingly endless delays, I finally got this book. And was immediately disappointed. As an 'Apollo Junkie(tm)' I expected what the title promised - an owners' workshop manual. No, I didn't expect a set of blueprints and plans, but I DID expect a more detailed look at the hardware. Everything in this book is a rehash of hundreds of previous Apollo books. I found no serious discussions about engineering, dimensions, etc.
I'm STILL searching for a book with a good, solid set of dimensions on the LM. Maybe tomorrow.
However, as a standalone book about Apollo, this was a good one. I'll give it three stars for that.

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On July 20, 1969, US astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the moon. The Apollo 11 mission that carried him and his two fellow astronauts on their epic journey marked the successful culmination of a quest that, ironically, had begun in Nazi Germany thirty years before. This is the story of the Apollo 11 mission and the ‘space hardware’ that made it all possible. Author Chris Riley looks at the evolution and design of the mighty Saturn V rocket, the Command and Service Modules, and the Lunar Module. He also describes the space suits worn by the crew, with their special life support systems. Launch procedures are described, ‘flying’ the Saturn V, navigation, course correction ‘burns’, orbital rendezvous techniques, flying the LEM, moon landing, moon walk, take-off from the moon, and earth re-entry procedure. Includes performance data, fuels, biographies of Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins, Gene Kranz and Werner von Braun. Detailed appendices cover all of the Apollo missions, with full details of crews, spacecraft names and logos, mission priorities, moon landing sites, and the Lunar Rover.

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Apollo 11 Box Review

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(More customer reviews)This is one of the most unique items available to Apollo enthusiasts. It is basically a box full of souvenirs from Apollo 11. It contains replicas of several artifacts from the Apollo 11 mission contributed by the Astronauts (and from the Smithsonian). Sample contents are a replica of a page from Collins' 'solo book' he kept in the CM while Armstrong and Aldrin were on the moon, copies of photos of Aldrin's children left on the moon, and most amusingly a copy of Armstrong's travel voucher claiming as destination "moon."
There is also a brief and interesting short paperback book (more a pamphlet, actually) recounting highlights of the Apollo 11 mission. It doesn't contain any new revelations, but is a good general treatment of the mission.
I rated this as 5 stars for it's uniqueness and originality. Serious Apollo historians will not find any new information in the box set, but it IS an interesting compendium for anyone. This would also be perfect for someone just becoming interested in space flight, and could be handled by any reader from approximately ninth grade level.

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"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." These were the words heard around the world on July 20, 1969, as American astronauts accomplished the first manned lunar landing. People everywhere watched and waited as Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins embarked on a daring eight-day space voyage to a place where no one had gone before. This "museum in a box" features 16 meticulously reproduced artifacts from the Apollo 11 mission, from its heart-pounding launch to its triumphant splashdown.

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Rocket To The Moon Hardcover Review

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(More customer reviews)For readers who love true adventure stories, this is a beautifully illustrated account of the first lunar landing. With a carefully researched and dramatic story by Lisa Combs and detailed artwork by award-winning illustrator Robert F. Goetzl, Rocket to the Moon will hold readers spell-bound.

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Young readers hitch a ride in the Apollo 11 spacecraft as it embards on its fantastic voyage to the moon.Ages 5 - 11.--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Splashdown: NASA and the Navy Review

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(More customer reviews)First, let me state that I was very disappointed to see a reader render such a terrible review for a terrific book. While I admit that the book is not what I would consider as an academic or scholarly researched reference, it is an impressive work by a individual who played a key role in communicating this history to the world during the Apollo era. I can't fathom giving a 1-star rating to such an excellent work.
Don Blair was aboard the recovery ships and witnessed first-hand the recovery process. He had numerous interactions with key personnel responsible for the recoveries and broadcast 5 splashdowns. His book is really a personal memoir of his experiences, with wonderful personal photos, documents that include ship menus, and numerous other interesting artifacts. There are numerous rare personal photos including Neil Armstrong inside the MQF playing a ukulele following their historic mission. In addition, it is the first time a photo has ever been published of the prime UDT recovery team of Apollo 11 (UDT-11 and UDT-12). He also showcases numerous personnel often overlooked in the more commercial books on the Apollo Program. I would almost liken his book to browsing through a personal scrap book of photos, news clippings, and other memorabilia.
Don's book fills a historical gap too often passed over in a variety of books chronicling the Mercury-Gemini-Apollo missions. I think it is an excellent book and consider it required reading for those conducting a serious study of the history of manned spaceflight. I believe that most historians will agree that Don's book has a permanent place on the Apollo bookshelf.

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This is the first-ever publication detailing the Navy's role in manned spacecraft recovery from 1961 to 1975, from Alan Shepherd's initial suborbital mission to the Apollo-Soyuz flight, which inaugurated the first space collaboration between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.Splashdown: NASA, the Navy, & Space Flight Recovery takes the reader through a detailed explanation of how recovery forces on land, sea, and in the air were deployed across the globe to be trained for any and all emergencies. This book gives concise histories of all prime recovery ships as well as back-up ships in manned and unmanned missions, with every ship's history followed by a retelling of the space missions themselves. The Navy's ships, men, and aircraft stepped in time and time again to play their vital role in the space program and returned to their regular assignments and deployments with little or no fanfare. Now their side of the story is told.--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Jacob's Ladder Reading Comprehension Program, Level 2 Review

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(More customer reviews)This book is an excellent entry in the area of reading comprehension, especially geared to high-ability readers. The selections are a good mix of fiction and non-fiction, along with some student-written pieces, offering a good variety of genres from which to choose. The targeted skills include summarizing, paraphrasing, creative synthesis, consequences and implications, cause and effect and sequencing. The activities involve working on these skills and this can be done from a basic level to a higher level, progressing up the "ladder" of depth of skill. These are important skills for students to work on, and often gifted readers do not get to work enough on further development of these skills because they are already high-ability readers. Of course it would be nice if it were a bit cheaper, but it is worth the money. As a teacher, it is an invaluable resource which will be used over and over. As a parent, it is an excellent resource for supplementing what your child is doing at school. It can be used throughout the school year, or used over the summer to retain skills and to help the student continue to progress over the summer.

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The Jacob’s Ladder Reading Comprehension Program targets reading comprehension skills in high-ability learners by moving students through an inquiry process from basic understanding to critical analyses of texts, using a field-tested method developed by the Center for Gifted Education at the College of William and Mary. Students in grades 2–8 will learn to comprehend and analyze any reading passage after completing the activities in these books. In the form of three skill ladders connected to individual readings in poetry, myths/fables, and nonfiction, students move from lower order, concrete thinking skills to higher order, critical thinking skills. Each book, geared to increasing grade levels, includes high-interest readings, ladders to increase reading skill development, and easy-to-implement instruction. The ladders include multiple skills necessary for academic success, covering language arts standards, such as sequencing, cause and effect, classification, making generalizations, inference, and recognizing themes and concepts.Jacob’s Ladder, Level 1 is geared to students in grades 2–3, Level 2 is aimed at learners in grades 4–5, and Level 3 is based on skill development standards for students in grades 6–8. However, each book may be used across grade levels to provide increasing levels of difficulty in mastering reading comprehension.The Jacob’s Ladder guides provide teachers with an explanation of the nature and substance of supplementary tasks in reading comprehension that will help prepare students for their state assessment tests. At the same time, these tasks will move them from basic reading comprehension to more critical reading behaviors. Also included are an overview of the goals and objectives of Jacob’s Ladder tasks and suggestions for implementation, giving every teacher of gifted readers the tools needed to create a successful reading classroom.Grades 4–5

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"Live from Cape Canaveral": Covering the Space Race, from Sputnik to Today Review

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(More customer reviews)When I first heard about Jay Barbree's "Live from Cape Canaveral," I had high hopes for it. I expected it to be a memoir of one of radio and television's longest-serving and most-respected space reporters, a man who covered America's space program "live from Cape Canaveral" virtually since its inception. I looked forward to reading the "untold" story of the developing relationship between the space program and the media, back in the pre-cable, pre-satellite days of black-and-white television and rabbit-ear antennas. I eagerly anticipated gaining new insights into the astronauts and into other space reporters of the early days--men such as Walter Cronkite and Jules Bergman--based on Mr. Barbree's personal knowledge. I expected to read previously unpublished, behind-the-scenes revelations about the nation's space missions from someone who had "been there and done that" since day one.
Unfortunately, I was disappointed on all counts.
"Live from Cape Canaveral" is basically nothing more than an extremely superficial summary of American manned space missions. And I do mean superficial. The entire Skylab flight program, for example, gets literally one short paragraph, with absolutely no mention of the near-loss of the orbital workshop on launch, or the heroic and successful efforts of three astronaut crews to restore it to habitability. In "Live from Cape Canaveral," Mr. Barbree does not take advantage of his position, his longevity as a spaceflight journalist or his alleged "insider" knowledge to add anything to the literature of American spaceflight. He passed up a golden opportunity to contribute worthwhile new information to the historical record in favor of simply re-hashing the same stories that have been told countless times before. And, as other reviewers have correctly pointed out, there are many inexcusable technical and factual errors from someone who claims to be the "go-to guy" for spaceflight questions.
"Live from Cape Canaveral" never lives up to its intriguing premise. While it is well-written and fast-paced, it could have been so much more. If you're a serious space enthusiast, I recommend you give it a pass--there's nothing here you haven't read before.

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Tales Of Famous Heroes Review

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(More customer reviews)If you want your kids to love history, this book is a perfect place to start. The artwork in this book is fantastic and the biographies are just long enough to be thorough, but short enough to keep your interest. May great men and women are profiled in this small volume. This is one to keep in your library.
I highly recommend it! (And adults will like it too!)

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Moondust: In Search of the Men Who Fell to Earth Review

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(More customer reviews)"Moondust" is an interesting book. Having some notable errors of fact, it nonetheless captures much that is important in the popular conception of the Moon landings. Part memoir, journalist Andrew Smith began his quest to understanding the meaning of Apollo in 1999 when he interviewed Charlie Duke, a member of the Apollo 16 crew, and was touched by his admission that "Now there's only nine of us," following the death of Pete Conrad in a motorcycle accident. Smith realized, as did Duke, that not too far in the future none of the moonwalkers would be alive. At that time Apollo would truly be an event in history known only from a distance.
This set Smith on a course to interview the remaining Apollo astronauts, seeking to learn how their lives had changed because of the experience. This book is a remarkable statement of the lives of this elite group of Americans. Some remain household names, such as Neil Armstrong, who has carried his celebrity experience with both dignity and honor. Many are unknown to all except the space community. Some are garrulous and easy to talk to, others are aloof and guarded. Smith found that all were fundamentally changed by the Apollo experience.
Smith's discussion of Buzz Aldrin was especially fascinating. He spent considerable time with Aldrin and talked with him about his life, work, and dreams. Since returning to Earth on Apollo 11 Aldrin struggled with alcoholism, a divorce, and an unending desire to open the space frontier. He has constantly sought to find ways to continue his status as a leader in the spaceflight world. At a fundamental level, we learn in "Moondust," Aldrin was like so many other true believers in space exploration. Apollo and its promise of humanity moving out into the solar system excited him. Aldrin was the epitome of Smith's quote from journalist Jim Oberg, "A lot of guys at NASA thought that the goal was space exploration and colonisation of the Universe, and they all had their hearts broken" (p. 296). Political leaders enthused spaceflight advocates with Apollo only to "pull the rug out from under them." Those who believe that humanity's future lies in space, such as Aldrin, have spent the last thirty years trying to deal with some believe was a betrayal.
Most interesting, Andrew Smith offers observations on the role of Apollo in the modern world. He wrote that "Apollo seems to me to be the most perfect imaginable expression, embodiment, symbol, of the twentieth century's central contradiction: namely, that the more we put our faith in reason and its declared representatives, that the more irrational our world became" (p. 295). As only one example among many, he noted that our science and technology has made our lives more abundant than ever but our dissatisfaction has never been greater. "It's a cautionary tale about that most fundamentally human of human tragedies," he writes, "wanting something so badly that you end up destroying it" (p. 295). For Smith, the success of Apollo "killed `manned' deep-space exploration, stone dead, for at least the next dour decades and probably many more" (p. 295).
Finally, Smith comments on the reason for undertaking Apollo. What was the United States trying to prove? Certainly it was a cold war initiative; a surrogate for war. But beyond that, he finds an answer in the motives of John Kennedy. "JFK wanted something to capture the global imagination, and to excite his own people, and he found it" (p. 297). Smith asserts that any discussion of the practical results of Apollo are irrelevant because it was never about practicality. Astronaut Joseph Allen said it best in a comment reported in "Moondust": "With all the arguments, pro and con, for going to the Moon, no one suggested that we should do it to look at the Earth. But that may in fact be the one important reason" (p. 297). As Smith concludes, "For all of Apollo's technological wonder, it was as primitive as song. It meant nothing. And everything....Was Apollo worth all the effort and expense? If it had been about the Moon, the answer would be no, but it wasn't, it was about the Earth. The answer is yes" (pp. 297-98).
There is much to ponder in this book. It may be read on several levels. There are interesting and entertaining stories from the astronauts and what they have been doing since the end of Apollo. There are observations on spaceflight-past, present, and future. But there are also efforts to situate the Apollo program into the larger rubric of modern society and to understand its relationship to humanity as it stands at the threshold of the twenty-first century. Some of what Smith writes is depressing, as in the case of the lost promise that was Apollo. Some of it is exhilarating because of what Apollo taught humanity about itself. All of it is worth considering.

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Nonfiction Reading Practice, Grade 1 Review

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(More customer reviews)I have looked many reading books for my child. This book is outstanding. Everyone seems to know what reading is about. Some parents keep buying fun books without much thought. This one is about reading serious nonfictions and checking the results. It's skill training with clear methodology and step-by-step objectives. It benefited my child tremendously. In the past, my son read a lot fun books, but mostly, I realize, just had a superficial or fractional understanding. I didn't know about his comprehension level, either.
After applying this book for only two months, I started seeing the difference. Now, he is much more comfortable with nonfiction books. Those fictions become lot easier. In a recent assessment in school, he is one of the top readers in his class. He also ranks high in the BeeStar online reading program we use. This fine book is truly thoughtful and is so effective. I highly recommend it.

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