A Man on the Moon Lib/E: The Voyages of the Apollo Astronauts

On the night of July 20, 1969, our world changed forever when two Americans, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, walked on the moon. Now the greatest event of the twentieth century is magnificently retold through the eyes and ears of the people who were there. Based on in-depth interviews with twenty-three of the twenty-four moon voyagers, as well as those who struggled to get the program moving, science journalist Andrew Chaikin's A Man on the Moon conveys every aspect of the missions with breathtaking immediacy, from the rush of liftoff, to the heart-stopping lunar touchdown, to the final hurdle of reentry. This acclaimed portrait of heroism and ingenuity captures a watershed moment in human history. The astronauts themselves have called Chaikin's A Man on the Moon the definitive account of their missions.

About the Author :
Andrew Chaikin, an American author, speaker, science journalist, and space historian, is the author of several others books on space. Tom Hanks has won Academy Awards for best actor for Philadelphia and Forrest Gump. He has starred in many other films, including Big, Sleepless in Seattle, Apollo 13, Saving Private Ryan, The Green Mile, Cast Away, Catch Me If You Can, Captain Phillips, Bridge of Spies, and Sully. His other awards include Golden Globes, Primetime Emmies, and the American Comedy Award, among others. His first work of fiction is the short-story collection Uncommon Type. Bronson Pinchot, an Audie Award-winning narrator and Audible's Narrator of the Year for 2010, received his education at Yale University, which filled out what he had already received at his mother's knee in the all-important areas of Shakespeare, Greek art and architecture, and the Italian Renaissance. He restores Greek Revival buildings and appears in television, film, and on stage whenever the pilasters and entablatures overwhelm him.

Review :
A Man on the Moon truly astounded me...I found myself transported, reminded of all that was wonderful about Apollo. I laughed and cried. -- "Dava Sobel, New York Times bestselling author" A can't-put-it-down volume that picks up where Tom Wolfe's The Right Stuff left off. These portraits of the men...are vibrant and compelling. And Chaikin meticulously chronicles each Apollo mission in dramatic detail. -- "Booklist (starred review)" A truly authentic history with more inside stories, more details, recollections, and feelings of all the men who traveled to the moon than any other account of the Apollo program. -- "Christian Science Monitor" A twenty-three-hour journey to the moon and back needs a narrator who is easy on the ears, and Bronson Pinchot's voice has a wonderful timbre...Pinchot's narration is a good match with the warmth of Chaikin's prose...This audio version deserves to attract a younger generation to the definitive account of one of the greatest technological achievements of all time. -- "AudioFile" A winning and detailed account...The strength of the book lies in Chaikin's exhaustive research...While the author's main focus is rightly on the astronauts themselves, the supporting cast, from politicians to engineers-and especially wives and families-gets its fair share of the spotlight...Well written, full of fascinating characters and facts, and above all worthy of its subject. -- "Kirkus Reviews (starred review)" Fleshed out with never-before-published conversations taken from declassified on-board voice recorders, his book provides a vivid account...Refreshes the oft-repeated stories of these pioneering flights with new details, anecdotes, and reflections...This is a highly recommended purchase for both public and academic libraries. -- "Library Journal" I've been there. Chaikin took me back. -- "Gene Cernan, Apollo 17 astronaut " Offers a comprehensive, often penetrating look at NASA's Apollo program...Diary-like reports mix with first- and third-person accounts as Chaikin...gives his topic a sense of immediacy. -- "Publishers Weekly" Recounts in loving detail the standing Apollo epic...with verve and intelligence. -- "New York Times Book Review" Thrilling accounts of such remarkable experiences as the rush of a liftoff, the heart-stopping touchdown on the moon, the final hurdle of re-entry, competition for a seat on a moon flight, the tragic spacecraft fire, and the search for clues to the origin of the solar system on the slopes of lunar mountains. -- "Amazon.com"