Product Description

"In the Shadow of the Moon" tells the story of the most exciting and challenging years in space flight, with two superpowers engaged in a titanic struggle to land one of their own people on the moon. While describing awe-inspiring technical achievements, the authors go beyond the missions and the competition of the space race to focus on the people who made it all possible. Their book explores the inspirations, ambitions, personalities, and experiences of the select few whose driving ambition was to fly to the moon. Drawing on interviews with astronauts, cosmonauts, their families, technicians, and scientists, as well as rarely seen Soviet and American government documents, the authors craft a remarkable story of the golden age of space flight as both an intimate human experience and a rollicking global adventure. From the Gemini flights to the Soyuz space program to the earliest Apollo missions, including the legendary first moon landing, their book draws a richly detailed picture of the space race as an endeavour equally endowed with personal meaning and political significance.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #109003 in Books
• Published on: 2007-10-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 448 pages

Review
"The Gemini program has always been NASA's quiet, superachieving middle child, overshadowed by the space cowboys of the Mercury years and Apollo's lunar prospectors. French, an executive at Sally Ride Science, and Burgess, author of Fallen Astronauts, chronicle the missions on which American astronauts learned how to live in space for more than a few hours; steer a spacecraft around the Earth at almost 20,000 miles an hour; rendezvous with a companion ship; and navigate to another world and return safely. The authors relate that during the early Gemini missions, in the mid-'60s, several crews came close to ending in tragedy before NASA had the bright idea to have Buzz Aldrin practice in a Baltimore swimming pool for the final flight, Gemini 12. The book also covers the Apollo program and the U.S.S.R.'s simultaneous space efforts. Although the authors interviewed surviving astronauts, family members and NASA staff for some fresh material, space aficionados will know most of this saga by heart. For young readers born decades after man last walked on the moon, this is a readable introduction to the first years of America's leap into space." Publishers Weekly "For both space superpowers, human spaceflight was filled with remarkable triumphs as they strove to place the first person on the moon. There were also devastating tragedies to overcome. Through diligent research and pivotal interviews the authors recount that extraordinary era in this superbly crafted and eminently readable book." Rex Hall, MBS, former president of the British Interplanetary Society "My husband told the authors stories about his Apollo 8 mission that he had never even told me!" Valerie Anders, wife of Apollo 8 astronaut Bill Anders "Our lives and those of future generations were forever transformed by the events so vividly related in this book. These were the tense, often inspiring days of pioneering human space travel, and the authors are to be congratulated for their unerring portrayals of many larger-than-life personalities involved in that historic endeavour." Cece Bibby, the first woman to work at the Mercury launch pad "French and Burgess present a first-rate, detailed, and very personal account of the space race to the moon ... Strongly recommended both as a study of the social interactions among this unique group of people and as a gripping series of anecdotes that describe the exciting, dangerous steps behind the successful moon landing." CHOICE "There's a wealth of information and insights about the people and missions in each chapter, at least for those who haven't immersed themselves in space history." Jeff Foust, The Space Review.com "Authors Burgess and French are even-handed and equitable, and have done an excellent job in covering a vast expanse of material... The opportunity to get the true stories from the astronauts themselves is a luxury that will sadly not be available forever, and In the Shadow of the Moon has done an excellent job in gathering and eliciting the stories of these men, not just the 'official reports,' but the personal touches that render them more human... The authors have a touch for weaving revealing and captivating personal narratives amidst the nuts-and-bolts space history." Michael Patrick Brady, PopMatters.com "[T]he authors craft a remarkable story of the golden age of spacecraft as both an intimate human experience and rollicking global adventure... [T]heir book draws a richly detailed picture of the space race as an endeavor equally endowed with personal meaning and political significance." QUEST "French and Burgess have written yet another excellent book... [They] bring the history of space flight to life. I eagerly await another exceptional book from these authors."--Kate Cooper, Apollo 1 Memorial Foundation "The writers have gone beyond old soviet propaganda to tell the untold stories of heroic cosmonauts through new and recent interviews. This volume captures the anxiety and haste shown by both nations at the height of the space race ... This series will be read by future generations when they want the complete perspectives of the original generation of space explorers." Space Times

Customer Reviews

A must have book for anyone interested in the space race.
In the Shadow of the Moon by Francis French and Colin Burgess is the next book in the Outward Odyssey series that started with the April 2007 release of their book Into That Silent Sea. That book has received high ratings not only from those who have read the book but also by those who lived it. Just take a look at the reviews left on this webpage for that book. The authors of these two books gained much of their information from first hand interviews given by the men and women of the early Space Program.

In the Shadow of the Moon picks up the story of the Space Race right where Into That Silent Sea left off (although both can be read as separate, stand alone books) I like that the book has been written in chronological order. At first it might seem strange that the manned Gemini missions of Gemini 3 through Gemini 12 were detailed with out any chapters about the Russian flights but that is how it happened. The Russians flew no missions in the 20 months that the Americans were flying the Gemini Program.

In Shadow of the Moon covers all of the Gemini Missions and the early Apollo Program as well as the Russian flights of the same timeline. The Gemini Program was a great success but only after some close calls and hard work were the Americans ready to move on to Apollo. But did they move too fast?

Before I read this book I thought the best account of the Apollo 1 fire was from Jim Lovell's Lost Moon but I must say that French and Burgess have a more detailed account of the fire. The loss of the Apollo 1 is covered in the chapter titled The Risk Stuff. After detailing the events of that evening French and Burgess let others who were there tell their stories. Those people include Robert Stevenson. Robert was one of the last people to have contact with the Apollo 1 crew. Others that share their accounts of that night include Dee O'Hara, Hank Waddell, Sam Beddingfield, Gerald Griffin, Gene Kranz, Paul Haney, Jack King, Don Gregory, Richard Gordon, and Lola Morrow. Their accounts are one of the most touching parts of this book.

The Russians were not without their own setbacks. Soyuz 1 tragedy was as big of a setback for the Russians as NASA's Apollo 1 fire but new details of the Soyuz 1 flight are brought forth in In The Shadow of the Moon. Many people feel the lessons learned by the Apollo 1 fire saved the lives of other astronauts and in a way Komarov's sacrifice also saved the lives of at least three other Russian cosmonauts. The book also lays to rest some myths of that Soyuz flight.

The flight of Apollo 7 has become known as the flight where the astronauts and Mission Control did not work together as a team but there was much more to that flight. Yes there was some tension between the spaceship and Mission Control but the chapter on Apollo 7 focuses more on how the crew and flight controllers worked together. It also gives a great insight to how the crew felt after being told they had a flight, and then did not have a flight, only to learn they were to fly the first mission after the Apollo 1 fire. Pressure was on this crew to perform and save the Apollo Program. The chapter on Apollo 7 also reveals the life of Donn Eisele. Donn has often been called Mr. Whatshisname but after reading this book you will know who Donn was.

In The Shadow of the Moon also tells the life stories of some of astronauts that passed away before they had the chance to tell their own stories. Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chaffee lost their lives that day. While Betty Grissom and Donald Chaffee wrote books about these men I don't remember reading a book written by a family member of Ed White. This book will help you understand just who Ed White was. And it tells the history of those who would rather not write a book themselves. Those include Jim McDivitt, Bill Anders, and Rusty Schweickart. I especially liked the chapter on Apollo 8. It is mostly written from Bill Ander's perspective. Jim Lovell and Frank Borman have written their own books so it was great to read about the mission from Bill's point of view. Bill also reveals his thoughts on his crew's abilities to fly that mission and some might be surprised by what he had to say about Frank Borman's thoughts on the amount of training Jim Lovell received before being assigned to Apollo 8 as a replacement for Mike Collins. The Apollo 9 chapter is also written from Rusty Schweickart's perspective. There was much more to the Apollo 9 mission than Rusty's bout with space sickness. That chapter also reveals just how much Rusty sacrificed so that NASA could learn more about space sickness.

In the Shadow of the Moon has a great dedication to Dee O'Hara and Walt Cunningham has written a perfect foreword for the book. If you are looking for a book filled with dates and facts and rehashed figures then this book is not for you. This book focuses more on the people who were the space race. This is why I think Walt wrote the perfect foreword. He started out by saying that thirty years ago he was identified as an astronaut and was often asked, "Which one are you". He ends the foreword by making the statement "I hope you enjoy getting to know us as individuals in the pages of this book". That sums up what this book is all about.

I also look forward to reading the next installments in the Outward Odyssey series. The next book will cover the manned lunar missions. You might also look for another book in this series that will be co-written with two Skylab astronauts.

A window seat on the ride to the moon
It has been almost 50 years since mankind first slipped the bonds of earth to explore the heavens. Since then, space exploration has given us some of the most spectacular and memorable moments in history from
the first moon-landing on Apollo 11 to the drama of Apollo 13 and the devastation of the Challenger and Columbia disasters. The material already written on these programmes would likely stretch from here to the
moon, and many would be forgiven for assuming that there's nothing new to write on the subject. However, authors Francis French and Colin Burgess have found a new angle and made a most worthy contribution to the
history of our greatest adventure.

What separates "In the Shadow of the Moon" from many other books on the space programme is that it focuses on the men and women who made it all possible. This is a people's history of space and examines that magnificent race from the perspective of those who lived it and did it: whether running the programmes or riding the rockets. Through their genuine interest in the subject matter, Burgess and French won the trust of the astronauts, cosmonauts and the lesser-known or forgotten space pioneers who toiled behind the scenes. The reward for their dedication and sincerity were stories that in many cases have never been told before and provide a fresh perspective on the early days of spaceflight. The end
result is a book that ranks amongst the very best written on the subject.

Not only does this book provide a most welcome perspective on a truly remarkable endeavour, but it is also extremely well written and thoroughly readable. This book transports you to a time when the two great superpowers were competing for control of the ultimate high ground while the rest of the world watched in awe and perhaps bewilderment. It proves that while the men and women who rode these rockets were indeed the best, bravest and brightest of that or any other time, they were also mere humans with their own foibles, insecurities, peculiarities and
curiosities.

If you want a truly human history of spaceflight, this book is amongst the very best available.

An Outstanding Read!!
I'm on the last few pages of the book and I must say I hate to see it end!

In particular, I thought the Gemini section was brilliant! Along with quite a few missing links from otherwise well-documented tales, what I really enjoyed were the unique and exclusive comments from some of the astronauts who flew the missions, especially those of Stafford and Cernan. This not only lends credibility to the book, but it also brings the reader to the "inside" of the stories.

I've always felt that Donn Eisele was sort of The Invisible Man on Apollo 7 because so little has been written about him. But now, I have a much more complete picture of his personality, his domestic challenges, his professional aptitude, etc. Donn's a complete member of the crew in my mind now! I thought Walt Cunningham's comments were extremely helpful by providing the reader with an insider's view of key events surrounding the Apollo 7 mission.

This book really goes a long way in quenching the thirst for those of us who are "space literate", but I can see where it would fun to read and informative for those who wouldn't know Neil Armstrong from Lance Armstrong.

Lastly, the authors never let us forget that there were real human beings flying in those spacecraft; not robots programed to perform their tasks until their batteries died. To me, that is probably one of the key things that makes this book special.