CM Magazine: Moon Landing: The Race for the Moon. (Discoveries Series).

________________ CM . . . . Volume VII Number 10 . . . . January 19, 2001

Moon Landing: The Race for the Moon. (Discoveries Series).

Carole Stott. Illustrated by Richard Bonson.
Toronto, ON: Stoddart, 1999.
48 pp., cloth, $17.95.
ISBN 0-7737-3172-5.

Subject Headings:
Space flight to the moon-Juvenile literature.
Moon-Exploration-Juvenile literature.

Grades 4 - 9 / Ages 9 - 14.

Review by Ruth McMahon.

**1/2 /4

excerpt:

The Day of Liftoff
The crew of Apollo 11 had an early call on July 16, 1969. They were awakened at 4:15 A.M., and after a brief medical examination they sat down for breakfast. Today's menu was special. It was steak, eggs, toast, orange juice and coffee. It would be their last meal for a while. In four hours' time they would be sitting inside the Apollo command module (Columbia) at the top of the Saturn V rocket waiting to blast off to the Moon. The five-hour task of filling the rocket with fuel was almost complete. Now the three men, Neil Armstrong, commander, Edwin Aldrin, lunar module pilot and Michael Collins, command module pilot had to put on their space suites and travel to the launch pad.

This book is another title in the style Dorling Kindersly had made famous--lots of photos and pictures with quick facts splashed across each page.

This reviewer is not an expert on the history of space travel, but the information is communicated in direct, easy to understand language. It is presented in a variety of ways: descriptive passages, labeled diagrams, famous quotations, "fact file," and timelines. In addition to the history, there is a short section on the aims of future travel to the moon, as well as "Moon Data" and "Moon Missions." There are a couple of misleading statements regarding the length of the lunar orbit (ancient vs. modern), and the number of successful lunar landings, but nothing a careful reading does not clear up. John Glenn is mentioned as the first American in space, but this book, written for the 30th anniversary of the first lunar landing, must have gone to print before his trip in the space shuttle.

All in all a helpful resource and interesting reading.

Recommended.

Ruth McMahon remembers hearing of the first moon landing riding in the family car while on vacation. Ruth worked as a professional librarian for 13 years and is currently co-chairing the Rocky Mountain Book Award.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

Published by
The Manitoba Library Association
ISSN 1201-9364

TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR THIS ISSUE - January 19, 2001.