Book Review: First Man by James R. Hansen

July 21, 2011

About:

“First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong” by James R. Hansen is a biography of the famous astronaut. This book is especially remarkable due to Mr. Armstrong’s 35 years of trying to live his life away from fame.

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Thoughts:

“First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong” by James R. Hansen is an amazing book that if filled with technical detail as well as anecdotes about Neil Armstrong. Most of the excruciating detail could be better served as an appendix, but overall, an interesting read, if you can get past the first 150 pages.

I was always a big fan of the space program and especially fascinated by the moon landing. It simply boggles my mind that men actually walked on the moon. The space program as a whole is fascinating and exciting even though some see it as a given.

Mr. Hansen had unprecedented access to Mr. Armstrong in this first authorized biography. The result is a comprehensive biography of Neil Armstrong as a young aviator, test pilot, astronaut, family man, and international icon.

The book explains some of Mr. Armstrong’s “recluse behavior”, which I for one never thought he practiced and admired him for not selling his fame, especially in this age of reality TV and other shameful displays of humanity. Several pages of this book are dedicated to misconceptions about the moon landing and Mr. Armstrong’s life, especially those circulating in cyberspace, which alone is worth the price of the book.

The book moves from excruciating technical details to moving personal stories, all important to help us understand the subject at hand. As in any history book / biography, the most interesting parts are the small anecdotes we never will hear.

Synopsis:

This is the first, and as of now the only, authorized biography of astronaut Neil A. Armstrong – the first man to step on the moon. The access to Mr. Armstrong is unprecedented and does not disappoint.

The book follows the arc of Mr. Armstrong’s life, from a little boy to an icon, in a sometimes personal, sometimes scholarly manner.

Buy First Man from Amazon.com*
More Books by James R. Hansen*

Zohar – Man of la book
Disclaimer: I bought this book
*Ama­zon links point to an affil­i­ate account, the money is usually spent on books

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Wrap Up

First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong by James R. Hansen

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