Just in time to keep the Apollo 11 anniversary celebration from dying out, out comes a book called Moonfire. Though, calling it a book seems like kind of an understatement.
Not content to simply reproduce Of a Fire on the Moon, Norman Mailer’s gripping contemporary account of the Moon landings, the publishers at Taschen also include some amazing pictures from LIFE magazine and NASA’s own archives. Many of these pictures have not been published or widely circulated before, so glancing through the pages will probably have a few surprises in store even for dedicated Apollo-philes.
From what I’ve seen, everything looks beautiful (and huge — approximately 14" by 17"; see the image below for perspective), but would it really be worth the $1,000 price tag? I know some fans who’d already think so, but to really sweeten the deal each of the limited edition books also comes with a signed picture of Buzz Aldrin in his space suit, standing on the Moon.
Maybe it’s because I was born after the space race died down a bit, but it always seemed like we became weirdly accustomed to this huge accomplishment. All the old newscasts played during anniversary coverage last week showed reporters and announcers in awe, experiencing sheer wonder, but for us now it’s old news. Even NASA’s upcoming return to the Moon leaves many underwhelmed.
It looks like this book does a superb job of capturing the excitement and awe of the original event, so for that reason alone I like it. Anything that convinces us of the importance of space travel will likely benefit all of us in the end. And, of course, Norman Mailer knew how to write and the pictures are quite pretty, so really there’s no shortage of reasons to like Moonfire.
