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Title: Fallen Astronauts: Heroes Who Died Reaching for the Moon by Colin Burgess, Kate Doolan, Bert Vis ISBN: 0-8032-6212-4 Publisher: Bison Books Pub. Date: 01 July, 2003 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 5 (9 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Author's Response to Book Query
Comment: Message from author Colin Burgess: in regard to the query from the reviewer in South Australia, information on the circumstances of the death of Pat White was deliberately excluded from "Fallen Astronauts" in deference to the specific wishes of the family of astronaut Ed White, who asked that it not be included as a condition of assisting the authors with other vital family information. The omission is regretted, but its absence is also a mark of the respect we paid to all the families of these wonderful men. In answer to another query from the same reviewer, the book in question is "Countdown," by Frank Borman.
Rating: 5
Summary: Great Variation on Well Covered Area
Comment: A very impressive book, especially given that it was authored partly from Australia and over 30 years after these astronauts had died. The authors have done a (generally) excellent job with their research. It was especially interesting to learn what became of the widows once they left the "astronaut family". If there is one fault with the book, it is the inconsistency with which those stories about the widows were told. It would have been nice to have complete stories about all the widows, but this may well have been due to the sensitivities of the families. I thought the lack of any reference to Pat White's ultimate suicide (if I recall correctly) years after Ed White's death was an important omission. One of the other astronaut biographies (it may have been Walt Cunningham's All American Boys) mentions that sad event in passing, attributing it to her feelings of loss after White's death in Apollo 1.
The chapter about Ed Givens is, perhaps, one of the most important in the book. Of all the astronaut deaths in the 1960s, this one has always been given the least attention, simply because it was not due to spacecraft accident (Grissom, White, Chaffee) or aircraft accident (Freeman, Bassett, See, Williams). It was almost seen as not having been in the line of duty (which of course it was). I, for one, felt Ed Givens's story always deserved more attention.
Overall, a great book and a refreshingly (although tragic) new slant on an era that has been generally well covered in other biographies and texts. Well done to all concerned.
Rating: 5
Summary: Poignant, Moving, Absorbingly Informative.
Comment: Poignant, moving, and absorbingly informative, "Fallen Astronauts" is an extraordinary, lasting tribute to America's astronauts and the Soviet Union's cosmonauts who reached for the moon, but tragically lost their lives while pursuing their goal. Equally important, authors Colin Burgess, Kate Doolan, and Bert Vis tell of the wrenching but inspiring effects of the fallen heroes losses on the lives of loved ones left behind, stories seldom told in accounts of the brave and courageous.
While readers receive a capsule history of the early, pioneering days in the race to the moon, the book's mini-biographies tell us of the backgrounds, personalities, young lives, and good humor of those who risked so much and dared so magnificently. The depth and breadth of research and writing are evident, making clear to readers that each astronaut contributed greatly to advancing the mission, though their lives were grievously brief. Recollections of them by their wives and children, and the remarkable tributes on the surface of the moon by fellow astronauts, are touching, and bring warmth and balance to stories otherwise forever lost in the sparkling magic of space travel and discovery.
"Fallen Astronauts" is a joy to read and adds a memorably eloquent dimension to the spectacular triumphs in space exploration.
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Title: Light This Candle : The Life & Times of Alan Shepard--America's First Spaceman by NEAL THOMPSON ISBN: 0609610015 Publisher: Crown Publishing Group Pub. Date: 23 March, 2004 List Price(USD): $27.50 |
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Title: Comm Check... : The Final Flight of Shuttle Columbia by Michael Cabbage, William Harwood ISBN: 0743260910 Publisher: Free Press Pub. Date: 27 January, 2004 List Price(USD): $26.00 |
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Title: One Giant Leap : Neil Armstrong's Stellar American Journey by Leon Wagener ISBN: 0312873433 Publisher: Forge Books Pub. Date: 24 April, 2004 List Price(USD): $25.95 |
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Title: Gemini 12: The Nasa Mission Reports (Apogee Books Space Series) by Robert Godwin ISBN: 1894959043 Publisher: Apogee Books Pub. Date: 01 February, 2004 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: High Calling : The Courageous Life and Faith of Space Shuttle Columbia Commander Rick Husband ISBN: 0785261958 Publisher: Nelson Books Pub. Date: 11 January, 2004 List Price(USD): $24.99 |
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