I am very late on this review but regardless, this was a fantastic book. For those who don’t know or don’t remember Apollo Seven never happened, what did happen was the tragic death of three men Grissom, White, and Chaffee. The spark that ignited the fire inside of the capsule was just something that could have been fixed as what took place many years later with the shuttle. Men become complacent, we all do it, especially when we do the same job every day and every day or each mission is a success.
The space program was something I followed as a kid, I had an uncle that worked on the rockets for the Gemini, then Apollo missions. The author goes through just who important the Apollo 8 mission was for the overall space program as a whole and that was something that I did not know at the time. He takes you through the lives of the astronauts what happens before and what happens after when they return. I do remember them having to be quarantine for so many days before they could see their family or others.
This was a very good book and a really eye-opener for me as to what took place behind the scenes during that time. I always wanted to know more about Apollo 7 and I was given that information here in this book. A very good book if you like history or from that time.

Very informative and insightful book. It really sets the scene and gives the history of the space program and some of the key people who made that effort successful. Descriptive enough to give the reader a real sense of the missions and the mood in the control centers, but not so much that the book gets bogged down. Highly, highly recommended.

Loved this book
Didn't want it to end
Highly recommended

Please see my post on this book here: http://mwgerard.com/books-for-june-17/

Apollo 8 is truly a thrilling and behind the scenes story of not just the first Apollo mission that orbited the moon, but of the entire space program leading up to it. The book is chock full of interesting tidbits about the astronauts that were both in Gemini and Apollo, what it was like to be in space and some of the back home lives of the wives.

This book specifically does a great job of bringing just enough technical and science into the discussion without it being overwhelming. I was personally so impressed with the amount of coding embedded into the Apollo computer and how everything could go wrong really quickly.

Given that this was also a book about Lovell, it is a nice companion to the Apollo 13 book and movie.

I cannot get enough books about Apollo missions, so keep writing them!

I received a free Kindle copy of Apollo 8 by Jeffrey Kluger courtesy of Net Galley and Henry Holt & Company, the publisher. It was with the understanding that I would post a review to Net Galley, Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes and Noble and my history book review blog. I also posted it to my Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Google Plus pages.

I requested this book as I have read a great deal about the history of the american space porgram , but this is the first specifically dealing with Apollo 8.  This is the seconbook by Ken Lizzio that I have read (Lost Moon - Apollo 13).

Like his book on Apollo 13 that I read several years ago, this book on Apollo 8 is well written and engaging. It details the events leading up to and the first trip to the moon by the United States. While the book centers on the three astronauts, it focused primarily on the commander of the flight, Frank Borman. The other crew members, Jim Lovell and Bill Anders, are covered in less detail. It also focuses on their wives, but in not as much detail.

I recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in the space program and in particular the first manned trip to the moon by the Apollo program.

A must read for those interested in space and Apollo 8. I highly recommend.

I love astronaut stories! I’ve read most of them. Apollo 8 concentrates on Frank Borman, but includes a lot on Jim Lovell and Bill Anders. Borman’s and Lovell’s Gemini 7 experience is covered.
Some things stood out as new to me:
I’d thought the Genesis reading on Christmas Eve had been decided on by the astronauts. They didn’t have any idea of what would be appropriate. Genesis was suggested by Christine Laitin, wife of a public affairs officer working for President Johnson.
The reentry process wasn’t a straight shot through the atmosphere. The spacecraft was programmed for more of a roller coaster ride to ease up on the extreme heat.
The early morning splashdown in the Pacific occurred when sharks prowled. The astronauts had to sit tight until dawn, half an hour away, for frogmen to arrive and attach the flotation collar. Six foot waves heaved the spacecraft, which was stifling, causing nausea and, in Borman’s case, seasickness.
Pages are devoted to an evolutionary concept of Earth and the moon. I breezed over that and point to the Genesis reading, “In the beginning, God created.”

Jeffrey Kluger, author of the book that inspired the hit film "Apollo 13," tells the story of the men and women at NASA behind the Apollo 8 mission. Although the mission lacks the drama of the failed Apollo 13 mission, the drama of Apollo 8 comes from the context. Apollo 8 is sometimes described as the only good thing to have happened during 1968. As the first manned mission to reach the moon, it inspired mankind with the promise of reaching the moon in an era when the U.S. was plagued by the Cold War, race riots, and political assassinations. Kluger does an excellent job giving readers a sense of the times, which in turn shows why Apollo 8 was so important, even though its astronauts never stepped foot on the moon. Another enjoyable entry on the history of mankind's exploration of space. Recommended.

http://manoflabook.com/wp/book-review-apollo-8-by-jeffrey-kluger/

I have been a fan of America's manned space program, so to read such a well-researched book was a real treat. Kluger's previous volume on the ill-fated Apollo 13 gave him the access and experience to discuss the much more-successful Apollo 8 mission. The author did an excellent job of weaving together official accounts and interviews with the principals involved. The result was a well- told tale of a pivotal moment in our journey to the stars.

I admit I was space crazy as a girl, and forty-nine years later I am still thrilled when reading about the time 'when dreams came true' and men first went into space.

Apollo 8: The Thrilling Story of the First Mission to the Moon by Jeffrey Kluger didn't disappoint. Although Apollo 8 doesn't have the inherent drama of the Apollo 13 mission, which Kluger and Lovett wrote about, the narrative is engrossing and riveting.

NASA badly needed a success after the deaths of astronauts Grissom, White, and Chaffee in 1967 while testing Apollo 1. And so did an America entrenched in a spiraling war, enduring multiple assassinations, and experiencing civic unrest. Getting to the moon by 1970, as President Kennedy had challenged, seemed more unlikely than ever. Apollo 1 and the Saturn V rocket had both failed. The Vietnam war was draining our coffers and the space program was losing support. NASA had to buckle down and recommit to excellence.

Gemini 7 astronauts Borman and Lovell were slated to spend fourteen days in space as human 'lab rats'. Then came the idea of sending Gemini 6 up after launching Gemini 7, a joint mission that would allow the spacecraft to approach each other to prove that docking could be possible.

It was just the huge success NASA, and the country needed.

As I read about Borman and Lovell and Gemini 6 and 7 I remembered my scrapbook with clippings and pages of articles.

Bill Mauldin on Apollo 8

I even made my own drawing.

My drawing of Gemini 6 and 7

Next up was Apollo 8, the second manned Apollo mission, which was to orbit the moon in December 1968, paving the way for Apollo 11 and a lunar landing. Anders, Borman, and Lovett had sixteen weeks to prepare. It was a crazy risk.

It was so interesting to read about the astronaut's life in space: motion sickness, meals, personal needs, illness, accidents, boredom--and the wonder of being the first humans to see Earth wholly suspended in the infinite universe. "This must be what God sees," Borman thought when he saw Earth.

The amazing astronaut's wives stories are also impressive, accepting the risks of their husband's career and keeping home and children 'normal' in spite of legions of news reporters surrounding their homes.

By the time of Apollo 8 my scrapbook days were over. But that mission had changed how my generation saw the world, spurring a new environmental awareness. Ander's photograph Earthrise was the first to impact Earthling's view of their place in the universe, a lesson was have sadly forgotten. This fragile, amazing planet is our home.


Earthrise NASA

I received a free ebook from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

Moonward Ho!

It is a triumph of public relations that we consider NASA to be a conservative, engineering driven, slow-but-sure organization. During the 1960’s, NASA was engaged in one of the deadliest and most unlikely pursuits, and danger not only lurked behind every corner it occasionally jumped out and tackled the unwary. NASA, which was effectively “at war” with the Soviet Union never fired a shot in anger, but yet was playing a high risk game and for the highest of stakes…the honor and bragging rights of an entire nation. Jeffrey Kluger takes a shot at telling a part of that story.


=== The Good Stuff ===

* It is very tempting to think of Apollo 8 as a mere dress rehearsal for the moon landings of Apollo 11. Surely the guys actually landing were taking the biggest risks, and were the real “explorers. But Kluger does an excellent job of explaining why the earlier Apollo missions, and especially Apollo 8, were the real heroic efforts. By the time Apollo 11 took off for the moon, it was not so much blazing a trail and travelling down a familiar path. Or to put it another way, much of the miracle of Apollo 11 was built on the risks taken during Apollo 8.

* Much of the story has faded into history, but Apollo 8 was the type of mission that demonstrates what Americans like best about themselves. As originally conceived, Apollo 8 was just another “fly around the earth a few times” kind of mission. But with Kennedy’s 1969 deadline rapidly approaching, a small group in NASA morphed the mission into man’s first venture into deep space-relying on untested hardware and unproven mathematics. The basic planning was done in a weekend or so, and the project rapidly took on a momentum and life of its own. Kluger does a masterful job of capturing the risk and improbability of the mission, and what it took to make it happen.

* There is the usual amount of insider information that space-junkies like myself just love to read. We see the development of the NASA brain trust (Gene Krantz, Chris Kraft, etc.) as they settle into their familiar roles. There is a very telling scene where Susan Borman asks Kraft what he thinks the odds of a successful Apollo 8 mission are-and you can’t help but smile (and cringe) as she accepts 50/50 as a good answer.

* The book is not all “Praise NASA”. The tragedy of Apollo 1 is revisited, including some retrospective looks at the sacrifices that were made…and the reason those risks were taken. Some of the politics of NASA is allowed to bubble to the surface, and Kluger doesn’t sugar-coat some of the flaws and errors made.

=== The Not-So-Good Stuff ===

* I have read some of Kluger’s other works, especially his excellent treatise (with Jim Lovell) on Apollo 13. I wish he would consolidate all his thoughts and research on Apollo into a single book to avoid the choppiness of multiple books and viewpoints.

* The book leaves some tantalizing dead-ends. For example, much was made of the slipshod construction of the early Apollo capsules. And while the Apollo program was generally considered successful (especially after Apollo 1), there were some serious technical issues on the later flights. Were these remnants of the original quality issues? Were the later space shuttle tragedies also a consequence? I realize these are beyond the scope of this work, but Kluger seems uniquely qualified to offer opinions.

=== Summary ===

I very much enjoyed the book, and would recommended it to any of my fellow space junkies. The author makes the argument that Apollo 8 was really where the race to the moon was won, and he does a nice job of backing up his arguments. The book is a quick read, not overly full of technical jargon, but a nice mix that told a nice story while keeping my geekiness happy.

This is one of the most interesting, compelling and thrilling books I have read in years. It showcases the intelligence and bravery of those who work at NASA and reminds us of what our country can do when it marshalls its resources for good. I would like to send a copy of this book to all of our elected leaders in Washington who decide how much they will fund NASA in the hopes that reading this will make them want to "reach for the stars" again.