Mission to the Moon

Jack Shafer

Mission to the Moon is serious fun
—The New York Times

Publishers Weekly

Sporting a highly visual encyclopedic format, this informative book features 200 photographs documenting early research into mankind's history with the moon, early space exploration and the space race, and the Apollo missions. Detailed cross-sections of modules, space suits and other equipment offer a sound technological overview, while information on the phases, structure and surface of the moon provides added insight ("The Moon's strong gravity stabilizes our planet's spinning axis. Without the Moon, Earth would wobble wildly over millions of years"). A DVD and poster are included. Ages 8-12. (May)

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Children's Literature - Marilyn Courtot

To celebrate the 40th anniversary of man's first landing on the Moon, Dyer has compiled a book chock full of information including a poster and a DVD that contains footage from the Moon landing as well as highlights from later Apollo missions. His account opens with some facts about the Moon, which include how people imagined the Moon over the centuries. The space race between the United States and the Soviet Union started with the launch of Sputnick I, and the Soviets took the lead with animals and men in space. Little was known about the Moon, so unmanned probes were sent to gather information. Some thought that the Moon dust might be so deep that a person might sink into it. Creating a two stage vehicle that would land on the Moon and return to Earth seemed to be the only feasible approach. The astronauts trained hard, and pictures that are somewhat amusing show them learning survival techniques in the desert, jungle, and other places where their spacecraft might land them on their return. There is a chronology of the Apollo missions—the gap between Apollo 1 and 7 represent the test launches after the Apollo 1 tragedy. The big day finally arrives, and the crew prepares to launch. The journey to the Moon is detailed with pictures, drawings, and photographs. A close up of Armstrong's glove cuff shows a checklist of what he had to perform during his moonwalk (a very clever idea). Space suits are examined in great detail, including the "urine collection and transfer assembly." The lunar rover is not overlooked. Moon rocks are examined, and experiments are left on the Moon to collect data. The future, if all goes as planned, will have astronauts returning to the Moon in2020—Project Constellation, followed by plans to eventually go to Mars. The future is envisioned with a permanent settlement established on the Moon, which is described in great detail in the closing chapters of the book. There is so much to absorb here that one reading will never be enough. There is an extensive glossary and index to help researchers find specific facts. Reviewer: Marilyn Courtot

School Library Journal

Gr 5-7

An outstanding array of archival photos and art, along with flashy packaging, will propel this celebration of the first Moon landing's 40th anniversary into the hands of readers, and viewers too, as a DVD containing about an hour of video clips is tucked into the front cover. The single-topic spreads open with looks at the Moon in myth and prehistory, then go on to trace the development of the space race, the selection and training of astronauts, the Apollo missions from 11 on, and, best of all, recent signs (finally!) of renewed interest in revisiting our nearest neighbor in space. Each spread is bright with pictures, from depictions of cave paintings and early rockets to large cutaways of a Saturn V rocket, an Apollo Command and Service Module, and an "extravehicular mobility unit" (aka a space suit). The visuals are interspersed with informative leadoff introductions, captions, and floating blocks of text. The writing isn't as animated as in Catherine Thimmesh's Team Moon (Houghton, 2006), but the dramatic pictures more than compensate, and eight closing pages of basic Moon facts and figures tack on additional value.-John Peters, New York Public Library

Kirkus Reviews

Attractively packaged by the same publisher of the INsiders series, this oversized volume is one of the many moon books coming out in anticipation of the Apollo 11 anniversary. But while it may lack originality of subject, its visual appeal and vast scope are hard to beat. Covering a wide range-from the beginning of the space race to subsequent lunar landings and facts about the moon in general-Dyer looks at the topic from a variety of perspectives. Some 200 photos from the NASA archives, along with large, detailed illustrations of rockets, space suits and other equipment, add to the presentation. Interesting facts are highlighted on torn pieces of paper, scattered scrapbook-style throughout, with corners taped down. A lunar module poster and bonus DVD containing footage from the first moon landing are included. For children growing up in a world where many rockets quietly launch to little fanfare or acclaim, this work recaptures the magic and determination of early space exploration. (glossary, index) (Nonfiction. 8-12)