Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Lost Moon: The Perilous Voyage of Apollo 13

Lost moon is the epic story of the disaster aboard Apollo 13. Jim Lovell and Jeffrey Kluger co-author this memoir. They bring the story to life with vivid detail of the disaster. Jim Lovell and the actions of his crew made this flight one of NASA's best moments.  It is an inspiring story of dedication and perseverance in overcoming huge obstacles and succeeding. This is the only book written by Jim Lovell.
               
Apollo 13 launched in April of 1970 headed for the moon. This was the 5th mission to the moon by American astronauts. Only 55 hours after their launch, there was an explosion on the ship. As the instruments failed one by one, the fuel and oxygen started draining out of the ship. Shortly after the explosion, the crew, forced to evacuate the ship, had to cram into a small two man craft to survive. The small craft was only meant to keep two men alive for two days at most.  This was yet another obstacle they had to endure. There was three men having to survive in the craft and they were four days away from earth. The point of view changes between the craft and NASA mission control throughout the disaster. In order to survive they were faced with the reality of either perfectly positioning the module through the atmosphere or dieing.  The astronauts were able to safely crash down in the ocean and were never able to succeed their mission to walk on the moon.
               
I highly recommend this book. Lost Moon is an excellent book with great details about the disaster of Apollo 13. This was the first time the details of the mission were shared in such great depth. The movie which was seen by so many people, just gives an outline of the troubles the crew endured. The memoir provides in depth details that makes the reader feel as though they are on the mission with the crew. The reader also develops a connection with the crew and their families, which keep the reader hoping for a positive outcome in what could have been a tragic event.


Book Review by Nick T.

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