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Summary: Deke Saved The Best For Last...
Review: What a book! I remember the Apollo program, especially the bittersweet mission of Apollo 17 who's emphesis on science was overshadowed by being the "tail of the dog". After reading Cernan's book I can guarantee that selecting Gene Cernan to be the last man on the Moon was one of the best decisions Deke Slayton ever made. As someone who vicariously lived the Apollo experience through the writings of it's astronauts, having the best storyteller in the NASA ranks write the final chapter of man's greatest exploration chronicle is almost too good to be true. Cernan's colorful, to the point style flows through the book like a torrent. From describing his early days as a Naval aviator to the gutsy gamble that won him command of Apollo 17, Cernan gives the reader insight into what it felt like to be there. Be it struggling to get back into the 'Gusmobile', nearly augering in on Apollo 10, taking an unexpected 'swim' in the Banana river or the triumph of commanding a lunar mission, Cernan makes you feel like you are right there with him, chanting "Go Geno, go...". The book also gives an insider's view to the role that politics, individual personalities and fate played in NASA's crew selection process. If you liked The Right Stuff you'll love this book. It's pure Cernan, and it's The Real Stuff.
Rating:
Summary: Deke Saved The Best For Last...
Review: What a book! I remember the Apollo program, especially the bittersweet mission of Apollo 17, who's intense emphasis on science was overshadowed by being 'the tail of the dog'. Well, I can assure you that selecting Gene Cernan to be the last man on the Moon was one of the best decisions Deke Slayton ever made. Gene's unabashed enthusiasm flows through this book like a torrent. From describing his early days as a Naval aviator to his gutsy gamble that won him command of Apollo 17, Gene gives the reader insights into what it really felt like to be there. Be it struggling to get back into the 'Gusmobile', nearly augering in on Apollo 10 or the triumph commanding a lunar mission, Gene brings it home to the reader in a manner that makes it hard to put the book down. If you liked The Right Stuff you'll love this: it's pure Cernan, and it's The Real Stuff.
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Summary: Candid, honest memoir
Review: Cernan's memoirs travel the same ground already covered by some of the other Astronaut autobiographies (like Lovell's Lost Moon), but Cernan breaks with tradition by criticizing fellow Apollol astronauts (Buzz Aldrin in particular), and takes some responsibility for the breakup of his first marriage. I would have liked to have seen some of this personal "cost" examined a bit more deeply, but I guess we can settle for a bit of illumination on the battle of egos and the jockeying for flights amoung the astronaut corp.
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Summary: a great story well told
Review: Cernan tells a great story of America's manned space program's early years with candor. However, I have two complaints. First, he over indulges in (and mixes) metaphors & similes, which gets tiresome. Second, some of the grammar is poor (I blame his co-writer and editor more for that). Having said that, I still think it's a terrific book.
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Summary: Magnificent insight into mans' greatest age of exploration.
Review: Gene Cernan's book is absolutely magnificent. His narrative and insights make one believe that they were right there with him on his Gemini and Apollo flights. He details how an ordinary American through hard work and dedication can literally reach the stars. From the first to last page, I could not put the book down. It was too bad that I was born after Apollo ended, but Cernan's book tells the reader exactly what is was like to be an astronaut during that exciting and pioneering time of space exploration.
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Summary: Cernan's word pictures bring his stories to life.
Review: The anecdotes and personal emotions run the gamut from gut-wrenching to euphoria. When Cernan says he wants the you to feel the anxiety he felt during the Gemini 9 space walk...you do. When he says he wants you to identify with the terror and panic that overcame him when his helicopter crashes into a river...you can. And when he says he wants you to experience the exhilaration he had walking on the moon...you are there! As a person having read numerous books by Apollo astronauts who penned their experiences, Gene Cernan's book answers all the questions that have begged manned space flight buffs for years, that being..."What was it like when you...?"
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Summary: Eugene Cernan wrote a "MASTER PEICE" for avery Apollo lover!
Review: Eugene Cernan wrote a "MUST HAVE" book evary Apollo lover. ive bought this book because i love'd the apollo program (althru i was not alive back than) and this book made me enjoy more then any Movie (Apollo 13 , From the earth to the moon) and it was just grait , so dont wait!!! BUY IT. Daniel Krupnik Israel. dkrup@galcom.co.il
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Summary: Great book about the historic race to the Lunar surface
Review: I was born in 1955 so was just old enough to appreciate the Apollo program as it took place and realize it's historic significance at the time. This book is a very good overview of that era and earlier events during projects Gemini and Mercury. But to me the strong points in this book are Cernan's inside information about other astronauts and how various events came about, really fasinating to a space buff like me, and even to a general reader unfamiliar to the space program. I have read books by other astronauts and this book is just as good as any of them. As this book says, Apollo in a way came before it's time, and we dropped the ball by not continuing it longer. Finally, the writing style is very easy to read, buy this book, you won't regret it.
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Summary: Fascinating account of the Gemini and Apollo programs
Review: Almost everybody remembers Neil Armstrong's immortal words as he stepped off the ladder of Apollo 11. But who remembers the names of the other 11 men to walk on the moon? Their names are in the history books, but you have to dig deep.With the success of the movie "Apollo 13" and the HBO docudrama "From the Earth to the Moon," those names are beginning to get some recognition. But due to the time restraints of movies or television programs, the whole story gets severely condensed and you don't really learn who they are or what they went through to put a man on the moon. In "The Last Man on the Moon," Apollo 17 astronaut Eugene Cernan chronicles the space program from where Tom Wolfe's "The Right Stuff" left off: the Gemini and Apollo programs. Cernan tells the story from the point of view of an eyewitness, filling in the fascinating details the movies had to cut out of the script. "The Last Man on the Moon" has the gritty realism of Wolfe's "Right Stuff," along with the boyish enthusiasm of Homer Hickam's "Rocket Boys." As the 30th anniversary of the "one small step" approaches, it is long past time to honor these brave pioneers and the millions who helped send them on their historic journey.
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Summary: If you read only one astronaut book, this should be it!
Review: I couldn't put it down. As a novice on astronauts and space exploration, I felt like I was right there with Cernan on the launch pad. Felt like I was there walking on the moon! Fantastic insight into those early days of NASA. Great book.
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