Product Description

'It didn't matter that they were now three miles beyond their target site, that communications were dropping out and that they were running low on fuel. All that mattered to Neil as he searched for a safe spot to land was that boulders littered the surface below. 'Thirty seconds', called mission control. In truth, the flight controllers were now no more than spectators, just like everybody else. No more needed to be said. It was down to Armstrong.' Simultaneously connected and separated by television, millions of people around the world held their breath as a human being looked back at them from the surface of the Moon. Yet who were these men capable of such an achievement? How did the passionate Buzz Aldrin, inscrutable Michael Collins and enigmatic Neil Armstrong learn to depend on one another as they endured the most intense period of their lives? From the personal tragedies and triumphs they encountered along the way to the terrifying climax of a mission that redefined humanity, "Moonshot" - now also a major TV factual-drama - draws on interviews with many of the leading participants and hundreds of hours of archive material to tell the compelling true story of an event that captured the imagination of generations, then and now.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #165001 in Books
• Published on: 2009-05-07
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

About the Author
As a former BBC journalist and now Head of Research at Dangerous Films, Dan Parry developed his passion for history while working on diverse array of projects for television, ranging from the Neolithic period in Italy to the British Empire. He is the author of D-Day and Blackbeard.

Customer Reviews

Out of this world! ;)
For most of my childhood I wanted to be an astronaut. I only abandoned the idea when I eventually realised that I wasn't even American.

Reading Dan Parry's book may not have compensated entirely for my Earthbound career choice but it did at least bring me one step closer to understanding what life as an astronaut would have been like. Mr Parry's account of the Apollo programme is so throughly researched, so crammed with insider testimony and interesting detail, that you'll be convinced that he must have stowed away aboard the Eagle in '69.

This book revells in the details of the mission (I can now diagnose a 1201 alarm code, which will come in very handy next time I'm in a lunar module) but such trivia only serves to highten the reader's understanding and sense of being there. You certainly don't have to be a space geek to enjoy this book as Dan Parry never loses sight of the fact that this is a story of human endeavour, not rocket ships. His tension filled narrative encompases not only Apollo 11's famous crewmen, but their wives and those on the ground who rose to the challenge of sending men to the moon and returning them safely home.

A recommended, informative and enjoyable read.

Moonshot: the stuff of dreams.
When We Left Earth: NASA Missions [DVD] [2008] [Region 1] [US Import] [[ASIN:B001BEK86A When We Left Earth: NASA Missions [Blu-ray] [2008] [US Import]

I was only 9 years old when man first landed on the moon. Forty years later I realised how little I actually knew about the Apollo 11 mission. Dan Parry's book `Moonshot' reads like a novel. It is the story of the men who made it to the moon, the technicians who backed them up and of those who perished in their efforts to make a moon landing possible. Despite being a page turner, Moonshot is packed with technical and historical detail. A quick search of the author's name reveals that he was a producer of Discovery Channel's `When We Left Earth: The NASA Missions' and researched the forthcoming History Channel / ITV drama `Moonshot'. He has immersed himself in his subject and it shows. Parry's easy style makes this book is an excellent read and it certainly plugged my knowledge gap.

Up there with them
There have been many books written about the first moon landing since 1969 and you might wonder what's special about this one. It's not the most comprehensive or the most authoritative but it is probably the most readable and enjoyable.

Despite the fact that we all know the story and the ending, Dan Parry manages to make the narrative taught and compelling. There's plenty of technical detail in this book but only enough to help the reader understand exactly what's going on. Fantastically well researched; reading this book is the next best thing to being up there with them.

If you want to relive your childhood or learn more about this amazing feat, this book will not disappoint; it's written for everyone, not just for geeks. A welcome addition to the 40th anniversary celebrations.