Book #13: Moondust

Book Title: Moondust
Author: Andrew Smith
Pages: about 350
Final Grade: A
Buyability: 8/10
Status: Owned (bought)

Review: Man oh man. As I noted in an earlier entry, I have a fascination with space and our existence. I'm not one to look at the sky particularly passively. When I worked at the BBC last year on work placement I heard about this non-fiction book because it had been picked for Richard & Judy's book club (similar to Oprah's club but bigger if you can imagine) and the BBC happened to be releasing it on audiobook - so I wrote a news release for it. I finally bought it several months ago and sat down to read it a few days ago and was quite impressed.

The book documents Andrew Smith's journey as he tracks down the nine remaining (of 12) men who walked on the moon - and along the way he recounts insider information and other interviews from every facet of the 1960's space era that you can imagine; historical data, societal commentary, presidental scoop, NASA gossip, hoax theories...everything comes into play, not the least of which includes Andrew Smith's own take on everything including his emotional reactions to the interviews he undertakes.

One of the main critiques of the book from other reviews I've read is Smith includes himself too much in the story...but as someone who doesn't particularly like non-fiction, I thought Smith's descriptions and feelings were what gave the story its life, and its purpose. The ending was essentially a big summary/recap/understanding for Smith and what this journey meant to him, which I suppose is a tad bit of a letdown...but at the same time, I really found myself relating to him as a *writer* in that I would have finished my book off the same way he does, with a sense of growth and reflection.

Overall I thought this was a fantastic book, really well-written, interesting etc. My only complaint would be that sometimes it leaps all over the place so you can lose track of who he is talking about or what each chapter is supposed to focus on (each chapter is more or less about a different astronaut but there is sooooooo much more included as well). Still I thought the book did an excellent job tackling a very complex, rich subject by trying to address as many facets of the Apollo program as possible. The emotions Smith was feeling and the questions he was asking were very realistic and matched what I would expect myself to feel in the prescence of someone who has left our humble planet.

If you have any interest in the space program of the 1960's, then do yourself a favoura nd read this fantastic book! I loved it and would highly reccomend it. Also - funny that this is book #13 as one of my fave movies ever (tom hanks yes!) is Apollo 13.