First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong (Reissue)
James R. Hansen
(Author)
Description
Now a major motion picture, this is the first--and only--definitive authorized account of Neil Armstrong, the man whose "one small step" changed history. When Apollo 11 touched down on the Moon's surface in 1969, the first man on the Moon became a legend. In First Man, author James R. Hansen explores the life of Neil Armstrong. Based on over fifty hours of interviews with the intensely private Armstrong, who also gave Hansen exclusive access to private documents and family sources, this "magnificent panorama of the second half of the American twentieth century" (Publishers Weekly, starred review) is an unparalleled biography of an American icon. In this "compelling and nuanced portrait" (Chicago Tribune) filled with revelations, Hansen vividly recreates Armstrong's career in flying, from his seventy-eight combat missions as a naval aviator flying over North Korea to his formative trans-atmospheric flights in the rocket-powered X-15 to his piloting Gemini VIII to the first-ever docking in space. For a pilot who cared more about flying to the Moon than he did about walking on it, Hansen asserts, Armstrong's storied vocation exacted a dear personal toll, paid in kind by his wife and children. For the near-fifty years since the Moon landing, rumors have swirled around Armstrong concerning his dreams of space travel, his religious beliefs, and his private life. A penetrating exploration of American hero worship, Hansen addresses the complex legacy of the First Man, as an astronaut and as an individual. "First Man burrows deep into Armstrong's past and present...What emerges is an earnest and brave man" (Houston Chronicle) who will forever be known as history's most famous space traveler.
Product Details
Price
$18.00
$16.74
Publisher
Simon & Schuster
Publish Date
May 29, 2018
Pages
464
Dimensions
5.6 X 8.4 X 1.2 inches | 1.0 pounds
Language
English
Type
Paperback
EAN/UPC
9781501153068
BISAC Categories:
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James R. Hansen, professor of history and director of the Honors College at Auburn University, is the author of First Man: The Life of Neil Armstrong.
Reviews
"To understand Armstrong on his own terms is to see a large truth of our time . . . [Hansen's] mastery of detail is put to splendid use. The narrative of the moon mission is crisp and dramatic, the science clear. He deftly takes us back into those few days of global fascination with the adventure of the three distant voyagers and the tense uncertainty about how it would turn out. . . . I finished Hansen's Apollo story with a wholly fresh sense of awe at the magnitude of NASA's achievement . . . a compelling and nuanced portrait of the astronaut."