A Man on the Moon: The Voyages of the Apollo Astronauts by Andrew Chaikin
While watching HBO mini-series From the Earth to the Moon on DVD (initial reaction: “Rats, it’s not a documentary!”—then, after one episode: “This is fantastic!”) I saw that the series was based in part on this book. So I hauled it home from the library and dove in. And stayed there a while—this book has 680 pages, if you count the appendices, notes, and index. And in this book’s case, 680 pages is a good thing.
One might think, “A 680-page tome on the Apollo missions… [yawn]” but boy, would one be wrong, Wrong, WRONG.
Chaikin talked with the astronauts, with their families, and with others at NASA, and the result is a book that focuses on the human experience of preparing to go to—and then actually visiting—the moon. While I have a certain appreciation for the technical whiz-bang wonders of getting humans into space and onto the lunar surface and returning them “safely to Earth” (as JFK put it), I confess I never crave the experience of reading a technical book on any subject. So this book, with its narrative tone and human-centric approach, was the right choice for me.
Though, speaking of technical manuals… While I was reading A Man on the Moon, this little news item, which includes three of my favorite things—libraries, the Smithsonian, and the space program—appeared on The Face*, and I got all excited. And then, shortly thereafter, this fine thing also appeared on The Face. But I digress...
Someone described A Man on the Moon as “picking up where The Right Stuff left off,” (Oh! It's Pete Conrad, on the back cover of the book!) and I think that’s a fair statement. (Though do the Gemini missions get lost in the shuffle, perhaps? Those poor overlooked dudes.)
I shall conclude with an ode to Michael Collins, whom I believe to be a perfectly lovely human. He seems to glow with affection for all that surrounds him, and I just cannot resist that. Just a couple of Apollo 11 quotes from the man: “Beautiful burn, SPS, I love you, you are a jewel!” and “You cats take it easy on the lunar surface.” Of him, Chaikin writes, “To reporters faced with Armstrong’s inscrutability, Aldrin’s technical relentlessness, Collins was a breath of fresh air. He fielded their queries with good humor; his face seemed to say that yes, these are interesting questions.” (p. 175) What a beautiful human being. And if, 40 years after the big event, Michael Collins chooses to express an occasional burst of discontent with the world of celebrity, I’m impressed by how un-grumpy he remains. And how lucky he considers himself.
And I’ll complete my happy talk here by thanking Andrew Chaikin for writing this fine book. It’s a world unto itself, and I’m glad I spent so many happy hours there. I gave it one of them five-star reviews on Shelfari and Good Reads; that doesn't happen every day.
*That’s how I call Facebook.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Booking Through Thursday: Blurb
This week's question is a great one: Something I’ve been thinking about lately: “What words/phrases in a blurb make a book irresistible? What words/phrases will make you put the book back down immediately?”
First: Is this a personality test? : )
The "irrestistable" part is easy: I am a complete sucker for books whose blurbs include words like "simple, starkly beautiful writing," "wry humor," and "good-humored." Also: "well-researched and compelling."
I run, screaming, in the opposite direction when I see these words: "angry, embittered rant" and "heartwarming." (I really gag on "heartwarming." Does that make me terrible?)
Friday, October 23, 2009
The Supremes
The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court by Jeffery Toobin
When I first heard of this book, my initial impression was that it would be dull. This displays my occasional utter idiocy, because what book with the word “secret” in its subtitle is ever dull? I should have suspected it would be titillating!
Well, this book is neither dull nor titillating. It’s better than that: it’s compelling.
Toobin’s great gift is in humanizing the justices. He provides details about the way they interact with each other (which is surprisingly minimal) and with their clerks, about their background, and about their interests (opera, Salzburg, NASCAR, etc.) He shares information about which justices are congenial, combative, reclusive, or sunny in disposition. (How can a person not be wildly fond of a sunny justice? I mean, honestly!)
And, having recently quit a book that failed at this next bit, I can truly appreciate Toobin’s approach to introducing the justices to the reader: he weaves their individual stories into the narrative about the final years of the Rehnquist court (the latter years of which he claims were actually the O’Connor court, in terms of influence) and the first year or so of the Roberts court. None of that simple, lazy method of devoting a chapter to each person, thank all goodness. The result is a richer, more complex and rewarding book for the reader, and I am thankful for it.
Here’s my favorite anecdote of the book, and I think it’s perfectly lovely. Apparently people have often confused David Souter and Stephen Breyer. In one instance, Souter was driving home to New Hampshire from Washington, and he was recognized in a restaurant by a couple who approached him and addressed him as Justice Breyer. Being a kindly sort of person, Souter nodded and continued the brief conversation, which included this question: “’Justice Breyer, what’s the best thing about being on the Supreme Court?’ The justice thought for a while, then said, ‘Well, I’d have to say it’s the privilege of serving with David Souter.’” (p. 246) I love this!
Snap quiz: Can you name all nine justices?* If so, buy yourself a giganto treat from the DQ: you deserve it, dagnabbit.
I really should have read this book before visiting the Supreme Court during oral arguments (which is one doggone fascinating thing to do; I highly recommend it. I was darn near stunned when they appeared from behind that curtain; there was a moment of, “Is that really them?” and it was then that I realized just how much of a dork I really am. Starstruck by the Supremes.)
So at least now I’ve read it, so on my next visit, I’ll be cleverer. And, yes, I’ll admit it: I’ll be even more agog than before.
*Stevens, Scalia, Kennedy, Thomas, Ginsburg, Breyer, Roberts, Alito, Sotomayor
When I first heard of this book, my initial impression was that it would be dull. This displays my occasional utter idiocy, because what book with the word “secret” in its subtitle is ever dull? I should have suspected it would be titillating!
Well, this book is neither dull nor titillating. It’s better than that: it’s compelling.
Toobin’s great gift is in humanizing the justices. He provides details about the way they interact with each other (which is surprisingly minimal) and with their clerks, about their background, and about their interests (opera, Salzburg, NASCAR, etc.) He shares information about which justices are congenial, combative, reclusive, or sunny in disposition. (How can a person not be wildly fond of a sunny justice? I mean, honestly!)
And, having recently quit a book that failed at this next bit, I can truly appreciate Toobin’s approach to introducing the justices to the reader: he weaves their individual stories into the narrative about the final years of the Rehnquist court (the latter years of which he claims were actually the O’Connor court, in terms of influence) and the first year or so of the Roberts court. None of that simple, lazy method of devoting a chapter to each person, thank all goodness. The result is a richer, more complex and rewarding book for the reader, and I am thankful for it.
Here’s my favorite anecdote of the book, and I think it’s perfectly lovely. Apparently people have often confused David Souter and Stephen Breyer. In one instance, Souter was driving home to New Hampshire from Washington, and he was recognized in a restaurant by a couple who approached him and addressed him as Justice Breyer. Being a kindly sort of person, Souter nodded and continued the brief conversation, which included this question: “’Justice Breyer, what’s the best thing about being on the Supreme Court?’ The justice thought for a while, then said, ‘Well, I’d have to say it’s the privilege of serving with David Souter.’” (p. 246) I love this!
Snap quiz: Can you name all nine justices?* If so, buy yourself a giganto treat from the DQ: you deserve it, dagnabbit.
I really should have read this book before visiting the Supreme Court during oral arguments (which is one doggone fascinating thing to do; I highly recommend it. I was darn near stunned when they appeared from behind that curtain; there was a moment of, “Is that really them?” and it was then that I realized just how much of a dork I really am. Starstruck by the Supremes.)
So at least now I’ve read it, so on my next visit, I’ll be cleverer. And, yes, I’ll admit it: I’ll be even more agog than before.
*Stevens, Scalia, Kennedy, Thomas, Ginsburg, Breyer, Roberts, Alito, Sotomayor
Friday, October 16, 2009
Presidents: Retrospective Reading
For the U.S. Presidents Reading Project, we're allowed to include books we have read before we began the project. (hallelujah!)
Here are presidential books I've read but not reviewed:
About John Adams: John Adams by David McCullough
About Abraham Lincoln: With Malice Toward None by Stephen B. Oates
About Ulysses S. Grant: Ulysses S. Grant: The Unlikely Hero by Michael Korda
About Theodore Roosevelt: A Bully Father by Joan Paterson Kerr
About Franklin D. Roosevelt: No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II by Doris Kearns Goodwin
Here are presidential books I've read but not reviewed:
About John Adams: John Adams by David McCullough
About Abraham Lincoln: With Malice Toward None by Stephen B. Oates
About Ulysses S. Grant: Ulysses S. Grant: The Unlikely Hero by Michael Korda
About Theodore Roosevelt: A Bully Father by Joan Paterson Kerr
About Franklin D. Roosevelt: No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II by Doris Kearns Goodwin
About Richard Nixon: The Final Days by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein
About George H. W. Bush: All's Fair: Love, War, and Running for President by Mary Matalin and James Carville
About Bill Clinton: The Survivor: Bill Clinton in the White House by John F. Harris
About George W. Bush: Smashmouth: Two Years in the Gutter with Al Gore and George W. Bush by Dana Milbank
Plus about twenty hundred books about Kennedy. Why, I do not know. It just is.
U.S. Presidents Reading Project
Here's the home base where I'll track my progress on the U.S. Presidents Reading Project.
Completed: 22/44 as of December 19, 2010
List of U.S. Presidents:
4. James Madison, 1809-17 (Democratic-Republican)
5. James Monroe, 1817-25 (Democratic-Republican)
6. John Quincy Adams, 1825-29 (Democratic-Republican)
7. Andrew Jackson, 1829-37 (Democrat)
8. Martin Van Buren, 1837-41 (Democrat)
9. William Henry Harrison, 1841 (Whig)
10. John Tyler, 1841-45 (Whig)
11. James Knox Polk, 1845-49 (Democrat)
12. Zachary Taylor, 1849-50 (Whig)
13. Millard Fillmore, 1850-53 (Whig)
15. James Buchanan, 1857-61 (Democrat)
17. Andrew Johnson, 1865-69 (Democrat/National Union)
19. Rutherford Birchard Hayes, 1877-81 (Republican)
20. James Abram Garfield, 1881 (Republican)
21. Chester Alan Arthur, 1881-85 (Republican)
22. Grover Cleveland, 1885-89 (Democrat)
23. Benjamin Harrison, 1889-93 (Republican)
24. Grover Cleveland, 1893-97 (Democrat)
25. William McKinley, 1897-1901 (Republican)
27. William Howard Taft, 1909-13 (Republican)
29. Warren Gamaliel Harding, 1921-23 (Republican)
39. James Earl Carter, 1977-81 (Democrat)
--------------------------------------------
Here are the Project's rules:
"1. Read at least one non-fiction book about each of the U.S. Presidents
2. Take as much time as you need
3. Have fun learning about U.S. history and its leaders"
2. Take as much time as you need
3. Have fun learning about U.S. history and its leaders"
An Author Named Ad
All This Belongs to Me by Ad Hudler
First, a big sigh of happiness. For the first time in way too long—a novel that pulled me right in. And whose characters got me feeling like they were real people. Real people to whom I wished occasionally to deliver a lecture.
So here we’ve got two very unlike people, whose lives come together.
Geena is fleeing her unhappy marriage, after the death of her teenage son. On her cross-country drive, she encounters a mail truck accident, from which she recovers an envelope containing a credit card bound for a man named Ellis. (Geena, baby, This is Theft! Cannot condone that activity!)
And—cha!—Ellis, of the credit card, is the other character.
So you might be thinking: romantic comedy! These two will fall in love… which, in a platonic way, they sort of do.
Ellis, a cute-Cute-CUTE! little old man, works as a docent at the Thomas Edison home in Fort Myers and devotes his free time to memorizing obscure facts about the inventor. In fact, he’s obsessed with the guy. (Ellis, buddy, you are the main character in your life! It’s OK!)
So Geena and Ellis meet… and oh, it is good, this book. There’s an is-she-as-evil-as-she-seems new director of the Edison museum; there’s the friendship—built on lies, but what the hay?—that develops between Geena and Ellis; and there are the odd details about the terribly odd Thomas and Mina Edison.
And the Geena running-away-from-her-everyday-life thing reminded me a bit of Ladder of Years by Anne Tyler, which--since I love that book--is a major compliment.
So even as I tsk-tsk-tsk about all that lying and stealing, still… I like these people.
First, a big sigh of happiness. For the first time in way too long—a novel that pulled me right in. And whose characters got me feeling like they were real people. Real people to whom I wished occasionally to deliver a lecture.
So here we’ve got two very unlike people, whose lives come together.
Geena is fleeing her unhappy marriage, after the death of her teenage son. On her cross-country drive, she encounters a mail truck accident, from which she recovers an envelope containing a credit card bound for a man named Ellis. (Geena, baby, This is Theft! Cannot condone that activity!)
And—cha!—Ellis, of the credit card, is the other character.
So you might be thinking: romantic comedy! These two will fall in love… which, in a platonic way, they sort of do.
Ellis, a cute-Cute-CUTE! little old man, works as a docent at the Thomas Edison home in Fort Myers and devotes his free time to memorizing obscure facts about the inventor. In fact, he’s obsessed with the guy. (Ellis, buddy, you are the main character in your life! It’s OK!)
So Geena and Ellis meet… and oh, it is good, this book. There’s an is-she-as-evil-as-she-seems new director of the Edison museum; there’s the friendship—built on lies, but what the hay?—that develops between Geena and Ellis; and there are the odd details about the terribly odd Thomas and Mina Edison.
And the Geena running-away-from-her-everyday-life thing reminded me a bit of Ladder of Years by Anne Tyler, which--since I love that book--is a major compliment.
So even as I tsk-tsk-tsk about all that lying and stealing, still… I like these people.
U.S. Presidents Reading Project!
This is a fabulous challenge! Here's the deal: Lezlie at Books 'N Border Collies has a U.S. Presidents Reading Project challenge going on, and I'm in. Oh, yes. Watch for that big huge list of all 44 of those fellows...
Fortunately, there's no end date to this challenge. I'm thinking it's going to take a while to read one book about each guy. But I'm in.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Booking Through Thursday: Weeding
Here's this week's question, which is a great one:
"When’s the last time you weeded out your library? Do you regularly keep it pared down to your reading essentials? Or does it blossom into something out of control the minute you turn your back, like a garden after a Spring rain?
Or do you simply not get rid of books? At all? (This would have described me for most of my life, by the way.)
And–when you DO weed out books from your collection (assuming that you do) …what do you do with them? Throw them away (gasp)? Donate them to a charity or used bookstore? SELL them to a used bookstore? Trade them on Paperback Book Swap or some other exchange program?
My last substantial weeding project was about 3 months ago, when I pulled several books I wasn't convinced I'd ever read again. It felt good. I've gotten better at keeping only the books I might possible read again. I haul the weeded books in to the library for the book sale, and it's satisfying. Since I've stopped buying books unless I know I'll want to read them again, it helps keep the collection size stable.
Often weeding's hard to do, though! I often stop myself from a good weeding by thinking, "Maybe someday we'll live on a ranch! And there won't be a library within miles! And I'll go stark raving!" That's enough to sit me back down in my chair to do some reading and ignore the impulse to weed the shelves. (A ranch?!)
Then there are the books-as-relics that I hold onto sheerly for sentimental reasons: the Nancy Drew mysteries, the Trixie Beldens, and all of those books by Agatha Christie. They remind me of my younger years, and they are mine forever.
Friday, October 9, 2009
Forever a Beginner
The Knitting Experience, Book 1: The Knit Stitch by Sally Melville
I was so nervous about learning to purl, I nearly stuck with the knit stitch forever. And looking at all the good stuff in this book, I thought that might just be OK. Sally Melville is a teacher, coach, cheerleader, and philosopher. And she designs stuff I like.
The book is a great resource for this perpetually-novice knitter: I keep bookmarks in some essential places I return to frequently. It’s also helpful that she shows techniques from both the right- and left-hand carry perspective. (I’m one of those freaky right-handed left-carry knitters, which I swear I inherited from my Swedish ancestral people.)
My favorite project here is the “Shape It! Scarf,” which I’ve made at least three times now (with #4 in progress). Here is one of them:
From this book, I’ve also made the poncho, the “Have Fun! Scarf,” the maximum scarf, and the minimum scarf. (I’ve sworn never to make any other knit object involving sleeves, which is why my project list is so scarf-y.)
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Booking Through Thursday: Discuss!
I was wanting to try a certain author and wished I knew someone who had read her works so I could get a recommendation when it occurred to me that having a “YOU ask the question” Booking Through Thursday might be fun. Each participant could ask a question they’ve wanted to discuss with other readers. Perhaps, like me, you’d like a recommendation of a certain author’s best work, or perhaps you LOVE a certain genre or series but no one else you know does and you’d just like to discuss it with someone. Or perhaps you want to try a new genre and would like recommendations from seasoned readers.
Here's my question:
I've been in a major nonfiction reading mode lately. Please help by either:
-- suggesting a novel that will jar me loose, or
-- suggesting a nonfiction book that knocked your socks off.
(May as well feed the addiction...)
Thank you!
Here's my question:
I've been in a major nonfiction reading mode lately. Please help by either:
-- suggesting a novel that will jar me loose, or
-- suggesting a nonfiction book that knocked your socks off.
(May as well feed the addiction...)
Thank you!
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
2009 Pub Challenge: Latecomer!
So I've been watching for the announcement of the 2010 Pub Challenge over at 1 More Chapter.
And I realized yesterday that I've actually completed the requirements for the 2009 Pub Challenge! Very satisfying, that.
From the 2009 Pub Challenge web site, here are the rules:
Here are the 2009 rules:
1. Read a minimum of 9 books first published in 2009. You don’t have to buy these. Library books, unabridged audios, or ARCs are all acceptable. To qualify as being first published in 2009, it must be the first time that the book is published in your own country. For example, if a book was published in Australia, England, or Canada in 2008, and then published in the USA in 2009, it counts (if you live in the USA). Newly published trade paperbacks and mass market paperbacks do not count if there has been a hardcover/trade published before 2009. Any questions on what qualifies? Just leave a comment here, and I’ll respond with the answer.
2. No children’s/YA titles allowed, since we’re at the ‘pub.’
3. At least 5 titles must be fiction.
4. Crossovers with other challenges are allowed.
5. You can add your titles as you go, and they may be changed at any time.
6. Sign up below using Mr. Linky.
7. Have fun reading your 2009 books!
I'm in...
Friday, October 2, 2009
Just as Good the Second Time Around
Rise and Shine by Anna Quindlen
I am a contrary reader sometimes.
I had listened to this book over a year ago and loved it. So I picked it for the book discussion. And, of course, having “assigned” it to myself, I resented having to read it again. But… I am kinder to myself than I give myself credit for: by about the third chapter, I was sucked in and liking the book more than I even remembered. (I love it when that happens.)
This is a story of two sisters: one, the narrator, Bridget, is a social worker; and the other, Meghan, is the host of the nation’s most popular morning TV talk show. They seem to have a lovely sisterly relationship going on, until Meghan says two appalling bad words about a guest—on live TV, thinking her mike was off when it was on, on, ON! And we’re off to the races… It also turns out that Meghan’s husband Evan has left her, and so pretty much she’s losing much of her life as she knows it.
So Meghan escapes to Jamaica on an extended vacation that is really a period of exile (“going under the porch,” as described by her sister, thinking of an injured pet that so vanished to lick its wounds).
Meanwhile, (SPOILER ALERT!) 43-year-old Bridget discovers she’s pregnant, and her life starts to expand, even as her sister’s life is shrinking. Interesting stuff.
This novel is also a valentine to New York, which is a city I think I would love, though I’ve never even visited. Someday…
I read somewhere recently that Anna Quindlen at her best (which, I would argue, is the case in Rise and Shine) rivals Sue Miller. I’ll buy that. They both capture the domestic with a certain sophistication.
I am a contrary reader sometimes.
I had listened to this book over a year ago and loved it. So I picked it for the book discussion. And, of course, having “assigned” it to myself, I resented having to read it again. But… I am kinder to myself than I give myself credit for: by about the third chapter, I was sucked in and liking the book more than I even remembered. (I love it when that happens.)
This is a story of two sisters: one, the narrator, Bridget, is a social worker; and the other, Meghan, is the host of the nation’s most popular morning TV talk show. They seem to have a lovely sisterly relationship going on, until Meghan says two appalling bad words about a guest—on live TV, thinking her mike was off when it was on, on, ON! And we’re off to the races… It also turns out that Meghan’s husband Evan has left her, and so pretty much she’s losing much of her life as she knows it.
So Meghan escapes to Jamaica on an extended vacation that is really a period of exile (“going under the porch,” as described by her sister, thinking of an injured pet that so vanished to lick its wounds).
Meanwhile, (SPOILER ALERT!) 43-year-old Bridget discovers she’s pregnant, and her life starts to expand, even as her sister’s life is shrinking. Interesting stuff.
This novel is also a valentine to New York, which is a city I think I would love, though I’ve never even visited. Someday…
I read somewhere recently that Anna Quindlen at her best (which, I would argue, is the case in Rise and Shine) rivals Sue Miller. I’ll buy that. They both capture the domestic with a certain sophistication.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
