APOLLO: The Race to the Moon

by Charles & Catherine Bly Cox Murray ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 1, 1989

Just in time for the 20th anniversary of the Apollo II moon landing, Charles Murray (In Pursuit, 1988; Losing Ground, 1984) and his wife, Catherine Bly Cox, have produced a fast-paced and perceptive look at the people behind one of the most daunting technological feats of the 20th century. Though space travel had long been the dream of physicists the world over, it was not until fortuitous political forces converged (i.e., America's need for distraction from the Bay of Pigs debacle and the launching of Sputnik) that the dream became a realistic possibility in this country. When Pres. Kennedy announced in 1961 that America would beat Russia to the moon, America's space program switched from neutral to fifth gear, sweeping up many of the world's most brilliant minds in its path. Murray and Cox detail the evolution of this gargantuan effort through the eyes of the engineers who designed and operated the program's equipment with computers hardly more powerful than today's IBM PCs. Harrowing descriptions of life-or-death crises in space, solved by two dozen engineers frantically scribbling equations in a back room, keep readers on the edge of their seats, as does the recollection of the Apollo 13 disaster and the triumphant account of humanity's first steps on the moon. Moreover, the authors excel in emphasizing the necessity of individual dedication and selflessness for social achievement--so much so that when an engineer leaving ground control in 1969 notices for the first time the existence of long-haired student demonstrators, we understand perfectly how he came to miss out on the contemporary world for the sake of a future in space. An inspiring and informative chronicle (and far superior to astronaut Buzz Aldrin's Men from Earth, reviewed above).

Pub Date: July 1, 1989

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1989

Categories: NONFICTION