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The Apollo moon programme has been called the last optimistic act of the twentieth century: over an intensive three-year period between 1969 and 1972, twelve men made the longest and most incredible of journeys. All were indelibly marked by it. Of the astronauts who walked on the moon, only nine are still alive. One day in the near future there will be none; soon no-one on earth will have known the unique feeling of gazing back at us from another world.
The thought shocked Andrew Smith, a journalist who grew up in America during the moon landings, and he set out to find and interview the remaining moonwalkers to find out how the experience changed them. 'Where do you go after you've been to the moon?'
In addition to this question that would prove hugely troubling to many of the returned astronauts, they also had to deal with being true celebrities. The walkers would forever be caught between the gravitational pull of the moon and the earth's collective dreaming.
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The most intriguing aspect of the book is the mystery surrounding the "first man on the moon", Neil Armstrong. I feel I can understand a little better about why he remains so distant. When my sons asked me what it was like to watch it all live on TV back then, I feel as daunted by that question as the astronauts must feel themselves when asked what it was like to "stand on the moon". Something not easy to put into words because it's a moment in time that passes so quickly and difficult to take in. This, I feel, is what most of the "moonwalkers" find the hardest question to answer. Moondust raises those un-answerable questions.
A fantastic read, Mr Taylor - A fascinating, intriguing book that really makes you think!
I have to disagree. 'Moondust' is an unashamedly subjective evocation of the Space Age that is both extremely interesting and often very poignant. Whether you remember the Apollo missions or not, it is facinating to read about an era that felt as if it was the dawn of a new 'Space Age' (indeed, many people quiet reasonably assumed that if we could land a man on the moon in 1969, we'd have bases there by 2001).
In 'Moondust' author Andrew Smith has interviewed many of the surviving astronauts who went to the moon and instead of asking the obvious question - 'What was it like to be on the moon?' - he is more interested in how they coped with returning to their lives on earth, knowing that the highpoint of their lives was probably behing them.
That said, 'Moondust' has many fascinating facts about the Apollo missions, ranging from some humorous accounts of the difficulties in going to the loo in zero gravity to a description of how pilots often had to assume manual control to stop their craft from crashing into the lunar surface. But for me, the most memorable thing I learned was that NASA only paid the astronauts a few dollars a day while they were in space and actually deducted bed and board from their pay cheque!
When I discovered that this book was included in Richard and Judy's Book Club it seemed an odd choice, but now I've read it I can understand why. This is a fascinating, very readable book that most people should, I think, be able to enjoy.
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