Back to the Moon

Rating:
Summary: I Think You'll be Disappointed.
Review: I reached page 145 and had to stop. Mr. Hickman obviously knows his business, but this is very weak prose. In material of this kind (any kind, really) you have to generate the "willing suspension of disbelief" and I feel he has failed here. Chapters are built up of short, sketchy passages, the intent apparently to make this feel "cinematic." Long passages of exposition provide backstory when this same information could probably have been provided differently in an entertaining way. Dialogue is flat and we do not see or feel the context for it. The reader is given open riddles -- rather than hints or teases -- in an effort to build tension, which instead simply serves to frustrate. The prose should engage and delight the reader, not make the reader want to simply scan the pages to pick out the plot. (If this is the secret of the proverbial "page-turner" I rather not read one.)

I recognize it is easier to criticize something than to create it, but I do sincerely hope my future literary efforts will engage the reader more fully than this.

Rating:
Summary: I read a ton of techno-thrillers and this one is the best!
Review: The reviewer from Kentucky apparently doesn't read many techno-thrillers. I read them all. Wooden dialog? Are you kidding? The banter back and forth between Penny and Jack are the best ever! I found myself shaking my head as I read that and all the other conversations between the people in this book. Some people I guess just like to tear somebody down when they're doing good stuff. Read this book for what it is meant to be - entertainment with a dose of scientific and engineering fact.

Rating:
Summary: Good concept, awful book
Review: You have to wonder about some of the reviewers who are calling this a great book, great writing, etc. Have they ever read a GOOD book? It was a good concept, but it probably was rushed into print to meet the 30th anniversary of the moon landing since it shows no signs of editorial advice. His characters and their motivations are unbelievable and the dialogue is wooden. He is worse than Tom Clancy in trying to string together some scenes with international ties, and Clancy is awful.

Rating:
Summary: Two great books but different
Review: I got a chance to talk to Homer Hickam when he was in Sacramento on the book tour. Readers who compare this book with Rocket Boys are not being fair to Mr. Hickam. He wanted to stretch a little as a writer and do something different. Not every book can be a Rocket Boys - October Sky. He said he loves to write and wants to write a lot of different things. There was a question in his audience about how he suddenly become a writer after being a rocket scientist? He laughed and said he's been writing professionally for over thirty years free-lancing for lots of magazines. I was surprised to hear his first book was called Torpedo Junction and was about U-boats! So let's give Mr. Hickam a break here and not be mad at him for writing something different. He said he was at work now on the Rocket Boys sequel and then was going to write a scuba adventure novel. I was surprised to also learn he's a scuba instructor for many years, too. Whatever he writes, I'm going to enjoy it, I'll bet!

Rating:
Summary: Back to the Moon is meant to entertain...
Review: ... although it has a serious purpose, that of bringing alive the real personalities of people engaged in the present-day space business. It was also written somewhat in parallel with Rocket Boys / October Sky to allow me a place as a writer to offset the soul-searching required to write the successful memoir. With Back to the Moon, I was able to simply enjoy telling a wild tale but one that was also set very solidly in scientific and engineering fact. All the events in this book could happen from an engineering standpoint. It is indeed feasible to outfit a shuttle to the moon - in fact, nearly anything can be sent to the moon if a large enough rocket engine is attached to it. Jack, Penny, Virgil, Paco, Sam and all the rest of the characters in this book have real-life counterparts that I've met during my years working in space. To compare this work to my memoir, however, is to miss the point of both works: The memoir came from my heart and soul, the techno-thriller from my imagination. Each should be approached as individual works. Any author who allows himself to be constrained to one type of writing is asking for trouble creatively and professionally. Approach Back to the Moon for what it is: a good read meant to entertain and, just perhaps, enlighten as to the possibilities of drama, fun and adventure in space.

Rating:
Summary: Sonny wants us to go back to the moon.
Review: I like the book a lot. But rather than Hollywood doing the honors next, I'd like to see NASA pick up the ball and put a better Hubble on the moon.

Rating:
Summary: This was a poor book, unlike Rocket Boys.
Review: I agree with Herndon, Virginia - this book had too much fantasy to be enjoyed. It's much like James Bond - the bad guys' bullets always miss, Bond has some techie watch/pen/car/etc. up his sleeve, only his exploits can save the world (in the book's case, energy usage), he gets the girl in the end.

The prose of this book is not up to what we read in Rocket Boys. I suspect a ghost writer in one of them.

Please buy and read Rocket Boys if have not done so already. You won't be disappointed.

This book, however, was a disappointment for me.

Rating:
Summary: If I could give it 6 stars- I would!
Review: The best books I have read were always based, to some degree, upon fact. Mr. Hickam, with his experience in the space program, takes this experience and interweaves it into an amazing 'can't put down' book. My next hope- that if a movie is made- it will be be at least half as good as the book- but it will be tough. Have fun!

Rating:
Summary: A gosh darn brilliant piece of work!
Review: I sat down with this book at a pool and, one sunburn later, got up again. It grabbed me right from the start. I loved Hickam's characters, loved the plot, one thrill and chill after the other. I'm an aerospace engineer. Hickam's solid knowledge of the shuttle and present-day space capabilities shine through on every page. Highly recommended to the techno-thriller buff!

Rating:
Summary: Too much fantasy to be a good techno thriller.
Review: I looked forward to this book because I really enjoyed "Rocket Boys." I'm a space enthusiast and have been in the aerospace industry for almost 20 years. I was willing to suspend my disbelief, but this was too much. The characters are stock ones, the plot has every device thrown in (evil international cabal crontrolling everything, tough guy protagonist meets tough girl,etc.). All the good guys live and even get girl-friends, all the bad guys die, SSTOs are quickly built and all is right with the universe. Sorry, I wish with all my heart we go back to the moon, but this one ain't even close.