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Apollo: The Epic Journey to the Moon

Apollo: The Epic Journey to the Moon

List Price: $35.00
Your Price: $23.10
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Yes, lots of errors...
Review: As mentioned in the other review, there are many errors in this book...But overall it is a good read.

An example, the Grissom Apollo 1 quote about not being able to communicate between the ship and the control center is not even close to being correct...

Otherwise, lots of great pictures here, but if you want the actual, true story, look elsewhere...

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Out of this world!!!!!
Review: David W-R has presented us with a book about all aspects of research and development in the Apollo program that allowed man to land on the lunar surface. The layman should find this an easy read as far as technical terms go--David has explained & illustrated it all---as they say, a picture is worth a thousand words--the illustrations are outstanding!! The picture of the Apollo 16 hatch is worth a million words--when one looks at the gears and "stuff" it is quick to realize, the components of the hatch are too complicated to be explained with words.
Indeed, a wonderful read even if you aren't a space geek!!!!
Reen

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Terrific introduction to Apollo!
Review: Dr. David Reynolds "Apollo" is an exceptional book on an exceptional topic - Man's epic journey through the black void of space to walk on an alien landscape and establish his foothold on the Stars. In 272 pages, Reynolds takes us along as a passenger on the wild ride that was the Apollo Space Program, neatly introducing us to the key players (some minor, most major) and their place in the thrilling journey to the Moon. Each Moon mission is nicely summarized with more than a few new facts being dropped in to keep even the best-informed Apollo enthusiast smiling. The book is beautifully laid out with a good balance between the photographs & illustrations that compliment the engaging text. Reynolds knows how to balance the need for imparting technical detail in a topic as big as this one with the need to tell a good story. Dr. Reynolds clearly has a love for this material and it shines through in his presentation of small details of the men, machines and politics behind the missions that put a very human face on the many accomplishments of the Apollo program. Whether you're a life-long Space buff or a casual reader, once you've finished `Apollo' you'll look up at the next full moon with a heightened sense of wonder.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Epic Story, Epic Book
Review: Dr. David Reynolds "Apollo" is an exceptional book on an exceptional topic - Man's epic journey through the black void of space to walk on an alien landscape and establish his foothold on the Stars. In 272 pages, Reynolds takes us along as a passenger on the wild ride that was the Apollo Space Program, neatly introducing us to the key players (some minor, most major) and their place in the thrilling journey to the Moon. Each Moon mission is nicely summarized with more than a few new facts being dropped in to keep even the best-informed Apollo enthusiast smiling. The book is beautifully laid out with a good balance between the photographs & illustrations that compliment the engaging text. Reynolds knows how to balance the need for imparting technical detail in a topic as big as this one with the need to tell a good story. Dr. Reynolds clearly has a love for this material and it shines through in his presentation of small details of the men, machines and politics behind the missions that put a very human face on the many accomplishments of the Apollo program. Whether you're a life-long Space buff or a casual reader, once you've finished 'Apollo' you'll look up at the next full moon with a heightened sense of wonder.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Three Manners to Read and Value This Book
Review: For Rick Husband, William McCool, Michael Anderson, David Brown, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark, and Ilan Ramon.

I read this book as a layperson not as an engineer, or someone who has an encyclopedic knowledge that an amateur can gain when an interest becomes a serious hobby, or a consuming subject for study. I was going to suggest there were only two ways to read this book but I finished the volume early Saturday morning several hours prior to the loss of the Columbia Shuttle and the 7 men and women she carried.

If this book contains errors about the size of a tank, or the function of a part, that is inexcusable. This book contains written endorsements from more than one Apollo Astronaut, and it would seem that if there is information that is going to be offered as fact it should be correct.

The book is a treasure to anyone who lived and experienced parts of the wonder that was The Apollo Program. This does not excuse the errors if they exist, but it is not reason enough to condemn the value of the book, or ridicule it as a picture book for children.

What quickly became apparent after the tragedy yesterday is how far out of touch the public has become with the men and women who perform these missions, gather knowledge, and do so in situations that contain a level of risk that few people would ever contemplate much less take. The Apollo astronauts, the Gemini astronauts, and the Mercury astronauts were men that we all knew by name. Movies have been made about the original Mercury 7, more recently a film about the miraculous team effort that snatched the crew of Apollo 13 from what should have been certain death was brought to the screen by Ron Howard and a host of wonderful actors including Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, Gary Sinise, Bill Paxton, and Ed Harris to name only a few.

The Apollo Program was unprecedented, 400,000 people were required to put the program and vehicles together to place men on the Moon. But when the program was ended no money was budgeted to even save all the working documents it took to create Apollo. If we wanted to recreate Apollo the absurd situation is that we would have to do research and development all over again because the records were not properly archived. One of the greatest achievements of humans, and so much of the work is gone.

On January 27, 1967, Gus Grissom, Roger Chaffee, and Ed White died without leaving the ground, when the capsule of Apollo I burned them to death in a pure oxygen atmosphere which a short circuit ignited.

On January 28, 1986 the 7 Challenger astronauts died less than 75 seconds after launch. Michael Smith, Dick Scobee, Judith Resnik, Ronald McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Gregory Jarvis, and Christa McAuliffe were those persons willing to push the boundries of human exploration on that tragic day.
And then yesterday, 9 hours after January 2002 had ended, the men and women at the beginning of these comments lost their lives for reasons as yet unknown.

The Challenger 7 were eulogized by countless people, but on the day of their deaths one of the most eloquent speakers ever concluded his remarks as follows; The crew of the space shuttle Challenger honoured us by the manner in which they lived their lives. We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for the journey and waved goodbye and slipped the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of God. President Ronald Reagan

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Excellent for the general public
Review: For those of us who don't know the difference between an AS-501 and an AS-504 this really is an 'Epic Journey'.

It may have it's minor imperfections (most are minor such as 33' vs. 36') but this is not highly uncharacteristic in books intended for the general public (you'll notice this often if you're superspecialized in a subject).

And for those of us trying to be perfect, Armstrong never admitted to not saying "a" in his famous quote. He says he thinks he said it and that it could have been lost in transmission. This however, seems unlikely due to the flow of the transmission. He also asked that it at least be put in brackets when quoted to read:

"That's one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind."

And this book really illustrates that.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: THE ultimate book on the subject!
Review: I can't imagine a better, more beautiful, more accurate book on the subject than this. And I just read that it was named the "Outstanding Academic Title of 2002" by CHOICE, which is one of the three journals that libraries rely on to make purchasing decisions. No surprise -- this IS an extraordinary book. Perfect for school kids and adults alike. I know at least two people who will be getting it from me this Christmas!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: One of the best non-fiction books I've ever read
Review: I highly recommend this book, even if you're only remotely interested in the subject. It has everything from pictures to fold-out diagrams, special inserts on all the major points, etc. Just packed with cool stuff. And as for the text, I got chills just reading it. This should be standard reading in 11th Grade History, and those of us outside of a history class will still love every page. Great book.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: One of the best non-fiction books I've ever read
Review: I highly recommend this book, even if you're only remotely interested in the subject. It has everything from pictures to fold-out diagrams, special inserts on all the major points, etc. Just packed with cool stuff. And as for the text, I got chills just reading it. This should be standard reading in 11th Grade History, and those of us outside of a history class will still love every page. Great book.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A must-have for every space enthusiast
Review: I just received an advance copy of "Apollo: The Epic Journey to the Moon" by David Reynolds (Tehabi Books, San Diego). It's really, by far, one of the most spectacular visual histories of the Apollo program I've ever seen. 272 pp, hundreds of full-color illustrations, including several fold-out pages (such as a four-page fold-out cutaway of the Saturn V), and an authoritative text, the book is a gorgeous package. Unlike most other histories of the program, "Apollo" discusses the lunar landings within the larger social and scientific context. In fact, the first 100 pages are devoted to the events that led up to Apollo, including a beautifully illustrated history of rocketry and space exploration (featuring 6 pages on the Collier's series, with full-color Bonestell art, and the Disney TV space shows). There is a section on the origins and geology of the moon--with great specially-commissioned diagrams--and several pages about the Soviet moon program.

All in all a spectacular volume that I cannot recommend too highly.


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