Rating: 
Summary: Tying up loose ends...
Review: Did you see the movie and wonder some things? Like what WAS that PC+2 burn they kept talking about in the movie? (A burn to speed up the ship that occured 2 hours after the craft reached the pericynthion of its orbit, or the closest point the craft came to the moon) Did that seat-of-the-pants burn that was shown actually occur? (Yes, it did, but only lasted 14 seconds instead of the 30 in the movie) Did Jim Lovell really tell his wife that they were not going to Acupulco (sic) but instead the moon? (Yes, but during Apollo 8)Just as engaging as the (wonderful) movie and twice as informative (not that the movie WASN'T, just that the book lasts longer then the movie), this book is a great read even if you are not into the Apollo era. It is filled with ironic humor ("...Apollo 13, so the Houston guys now had it, would be coming home on the afternoon of April 17 - or perhaps on the evening of the seventeenth, or perhaps sometime on the eighteenth - and would be splashing down in the South Pacific - or perhaps the Indian Ocean, or perhaps the Atlantic.") and loads of information, which make the movie look like it tells you nothing. Information is included on the trans-lunar injection simply mentioned in the movie (which got Apollo 13 going towards the moon), the PC+2 burn, an explosion of one of the betteries in the LEM, yet another quick burn about 5 hours before reentry, and a description of why the explosion occured that is far more satisfying then what was offered in the movie. See the movie, then read the book. Then see the movie again. And enjoy. :)
Rating:
Summary: Best Astrounaut Book Ever !!!!!!
Review: Excellent book a portail of the trial and tribulations that led up to the accident that happend on the fateful night of April 13, 1970. I have read the book about 10 times already and still to this day this is probably the best portail of the real thing because of the fact it was the longest 2 days of their lives and all of the world especially the media was involved. I think the best thing is that this became a movie that starred Tom Hanks and Kevin Bacon. Great Flick see it soon and enjoy the book.
Rating:
Summary: Best Astrounaut Book Ever !!!!!!
Review: Excellent book a portail of the trial and tribulations that led up to the accident that happend on the fateful night of April 13, 1970. I have read the book about 10 times already and still to this day this is probably the best portail of the real thing because of the fact it was the longest 2 days of their lives and all of the world especially the media was involved. I think the best thing is that this became a movie that starred Tom Hanks and Kevin Bacon. Great Flick see it soon and enjoy the book.
Rating: 
Summary: It had lots of info, but it was really Lovell's biography.
Review: I am a sixth-grade student writing a research paper on Apollo 13, and I used your book as one of my sources. It was a very fact-filled book, but I thought it seemed more like Jim Lovell's biography. There was too much trivial information on Jim Lovell's young life and the Apollo 1 mission in which Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chafee were killed. What I was looking for was a comprehensible book about Apollo 13, and Apollo 13 only, not a book with half of it on what happened to Jim Lovell before he ever went on Apollo 13. I'm sorry if I sound offensive, because Ron Howard did make a very successful movie based on it, but if you don't think I ever give good comments, read my input for the Apollo 13 book "Moon Shot", by Alan Shepard and Deke Slayton, which I rated 5 stars.
Rating:
Summary: A Kluger-Lovell Masterpiece
Review: I don't want to repeat all of the well-deserved accolades in the other reviews, but knowing how these kinds of co-authored books really are written, it appears that most of the credit for the marvelous, engrossing writing style of Apollo 13 goes to its co-author, Jeffrey Kluger. Astronaut Jim Lovell provides Mr. Kluger with lots of information and leads to information, but Kluger was the one who put it all together in this magnificent book. As one who has followed his other writings, too, I must say that Kluger deserves recognition as one of the best writers of our era, particularly in his facile ability to explain complicated scientific information to a lay audience. Read Kluger's later book, "Journey Beyond Selene" (being rereleased in paperback as "Moon Hunters"), and you will know even better what I mean.
Rating:
Summary: Good but boring.
Review: I liked the book but there is too much explaning and not enough action.
Rating:
Summary: An Heroic Journey
Review: I listened to the audio version (abridged) of this book. It is an incredible story, about incredible men, facing incredible odds. The chances of getting back to earth after Apollo 13 encountered her "problem" were very low. It was the brains of NASA ("work the problem people") and the cool demeanor of the three astronauts, who were under incredible stress, that made the successful return possible. The audio version was incredible. The narrator was very good and they incorporated actual transmissions from Apollo 13 which gave the listening experience an authenic touch. Jim Lovell read certain parts of the book and that also gave the audio book a more personal touch. I think some of the more technical aspects of the book were easier to absorb in an audio format. Overall, a great story of heroic achievment for the American space program. Apollo 13 may not have made it to the moon, but they made it home, when home seemed very far away.
Rating:
Summary: An Heroic Journey
Review: I listened to the audio version (abridged) of this book. It is an incredible story, about incredible men, facing incredible odds. The chances of getting back to earth after Apollo 13 encountered her "problem" were very low. It was the brains of NASA ("work the problem people") and the cool demeanor of the three astronauts, who were under incredible stress, that made the successful return possible. The audio version was incredible. The narrator was very good and they incorporated actual transmissions from Apollo 13 which gave the listening experience an authenic touch. Jim Lovell read certain parts of the book and that also gave the audio book a more personal touch. I think some of the more technical aspects of the book were easier to absorb in an audio format. Overall, a great story of heroic achievment for the American space program. Apollo 13 may not have made it to the moon, but they made it home, when home seemed very far away.
Rating:
Summary: An Heroic Journey
Review: I listened to the audio version (abridged) of this book. It is an incredible story, about incredible men, facing incredible odds. The chances of getting back to earth after Apollo 13 encountered her "problem" were very low. It was the brains of NASA ("work the problem people") and the cool demeanor of the three astronauts, who were under incredible stress, that made the successful return possible. The audio version was incredible. The narrator was very good and they incorporated actual transmissions from Apollo 13 which gave the listening experience an authenic touch. Jim Lovell read certain parts of the book and that also gave the audio book a more personal touch. I think some of the more technical aspects of the book were easier to absorb in an audio format. Overall, a great story of heroic achievment for the American space program. Apollo 13 may not have made it to the moon, but they made it home, when home seemed very far away.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Historical Text
Review: I picked up this book thinking it would be more or less a synopsis of the events portrayed in the movie. Much to my enjoyment that was not the case at all. This book is a thorough history of the events surrounding the mission of Apollo 13. It contains a good bit of historical perspecive of the programs leading up to the Apollo missions themselves (Mercury and Gemini) as well as the "inner thoughts" of many involved with the space program. It is relatively even handed in its portrayal of NASA -- although at least partially penned by Jim Lovell, it is willing to point out the weaknesess in the program. A very enjoyable story, as well as a look at our space program's history.
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