Customer Reviews

Carrying the Fire

5 star:		(61)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I found this book by referral from other's reviews of lesser astronaut books. Several reviews said, in effect, "don't read this book but find yourself a copy of Carrying the Fire." So I did and now I know what they meant.

Michael Collins was the third astronaut on the famous Apollo 11 flight that landed on the moon in July, 1969. Unfortunately, because he wasn't one of the two in the Lunar Module, he isn't often mentioned. He stayed in lunar orbit as the Command Module Pilot. This book is Collins' telling of what it was like to be an astronaut, both in the Gemini and Apollo programs. He talks about the astronaut selection process, and what it was like to go through it. And he tells the story - from a very personal perspective, of what it was like, what he felt, what he worried about, what angered him, and well...you get the idea - of preparing for and flying a Gemini and Apollo mission.

Because this is his story, and his first person telling of the story, there isn't really anything here about the lunar landing itself. Rather, he talks about what he was doing when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed and walked on the moon.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book. It often made me laugh out loud and I certainly believe that I now know how Collins felt during his tenure as one of America's Astronauts. I found the book both well-written and engaging. I also found, to my surprise, that this is a humble, revealing and candid story. Highly recommended if you are interested in the genre.

There have been several excellent Apollo astronaut memoirs, especially Gene Cernan's "The Last Man on the Moon" and Jim Lovell's "Lost Moon," which was made into the feature film "Apollo 13." This one is still the most honest and reflective of them all. It extends a tradition of the aviator as litterateur into the age of space travel.

Collins had an illustrious career as an astronaut. Chosen in the third group of astronauts in 1963, he served as backup pilot for Gemini VII, pilot for Gemini X, and command module pilot for Apollo 11. On that last mission he became the loneliest man in the universe when his two crewmates, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, landed on the Moon while he remained in orbit around the Moon in the Command Module. In "Carrying the Fire" Collins writes of his solitude in lunar orbit in July 1969. As he disappeared on the backside of the Moon from Earth, he recalled, "I am alone now, truly alone, and absolutely isolated from any known life, I am it. If a count were taken, the score would be three billion plus two over on the other side of the moon, and one plus God only knows what on this side. I feel this powerfully-not as fear or loneliness-but as awareness, anticipation, satisfaction, confidence, almost exultation. I like the feeling. Outside my window I can see stars-and that is all. Where I know the moon to be, there is simply a black void, the moon's presence is defined solely by the absence of stars." He compared it to being in a skiff in the middle of the ocean with only the stars above and black water below. It proved a profoundly moving experience for him.

Michael Collins left NASA in 1970 and became the first director of the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum, continuing to write eloquently of the possibilities of spaceflight. Among other works he published "Liftoff: The Story of America's Adventure in Space" (1988) and "Mission to Mars" (1990), a powerful exposition on the value of a human mission to Mars.

"Carrying the Fire" is the first candid book about life as an astronaut. The author comments on other astronauts, describes the seemingly endless preparations for flights to the Moon, and assesses the results. He also describes what he thinks of as the most important perspective that emerged from his flight, a realization of the fragility of the Earth. He wrote that "from space there is no hint of ruggedness to it; smooth as a billiard ball, it seems delicately poised on its circular journey around the Sun, and above all it seems fragile...Is the sea water clean enough to pour over your head, or is there a glaze of oil on its surface?...Is the riverbank a delight or an obscenity? The difference between a blue-and-white planet and a black-and-brown one is delicate indeed."

It is a powerful and moving memoir. Read it more than once and lend copies to your friends. You, and they, will not be disappointed.

I admit it, I took this book out from the school library when I was 12 and still have it 20 years later. Even at five cents a week, the overdue fees are not worth thinking about. As a schoolkid in Lower Hutt, New Zealand, not many of us dreamed we could ever be astronauts. After reading this book, I did. It didn't matter that by the early 1980s when I read Carrying the Fire there was no manned space programme to speak of. It didn't much matter that I didn't become an astronaut, just a military pilot.

What matters is that Colins's story touched, inspired and motivated me to believe I could do anything I put my mind to, and showed that there's more to success than glory, adulation or being the one kids can remember in history quizzes.

Good on you, Michael Collins. You're an inspiration. All you Amazonians out there who've leapt onto the space history band-chariot since Apollo 13/Earth to the Moon, take note. This is where it started. Find a copy and read it (just don't bother trying to get one from the Hutt Valley High School Library - it's out on loan right now.)

Michael Collins was command module pilot of the historic Apollo 11 mission to the moon in July 1969. Had he not forged such a distinguished record of achievement in the cockpits of exotic, out-of-this-world air & space craft, first as fighter jet test pilot and then as astronaut, Collins would have likely experienced noteworthy success at the keyboard as a writer. After seeing this book on a recent list of the "100 Greatest Adventure Stories," I decided to give it a read. Collins' brilliant narrative helped me rediscover those feelings of admiration, wonder and awe that I experienced as a young boy while watching the space launches and moon walks on B&W TV. This is a fascinating, revealing and oh so candid first person account of the pathway that took Collins to the moon and back--his early career as a fighter jet test pilot, selection and induction into the astronaut corps, preparation and training of an astronaut, the personalities of many of Collins' colleagues in the space program, the exquisite and intricate planning intended to minimize the risks to these brave explorers and ensure their success, his own anxieties and something of the impact on the families of the astronauts. All of technology's wonderous achievements of the last 20 years, e.g., laptop computers, cellular phones, internet, cable TV, etc. seem to pale in comparison to the marvel of sending man to the moon and bringing him home again...safely. While circling the moon in the command module Columbia, Collins needed to correctly press a sequence of computer buttons 850 times just to manage a successful rendezvous with his partners Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin as they returned from the surface of the moon in the lunar module Eagle. Just one example among many of the incredible vision and engineering and planning involved in NASA's glory years of success. Despite his wonderful accomplishments, Collins does not take himself too seriously, tells his story with wry humor and is maybe a little irreverent. His story sent tingles up and down my spine again...after all these years!

Without doubt this is one of the most wonderful books I have ever read in my life. Mike Collins is an exceptional writer who brings to life the excitement of his Gemini 10 and Apollo 11 missions. The author tells the story like it was and tells it with candor and frankness. In reading the book, I often felt like I was a part of the Apollo 11 adventure. Some previous reviewers have commented on the fact that Mr. Collins sometimes lets his ego show through in his book! Who cares! Who among us would not be bursting at the seams with pride if we had been lucky enough to say that we had been to the moon? One of the best things about this book is that the reader realizes the sacrifices these wonderful astronauts made. Today we often complain of long work hours, but look what these astronauts went through almost everyday. Flying T-38's to contracting plants all over the country or spending countless hours lying on their back in the spacecraft simulators. Consider that along with trying to juggle having a family and being harangued by the press all the time and not to mention autograph seekers. The job might seem glamorous, but it was tough. While the astronauts are are people just like us, they do deserve all the credit in the world for risking their lives on a daily basis. They are heroes and Mike Collins is one of them. All in all, this book is truly fascinating. No matter how often this story is told and retold, it never gets old. The great achievment of the 20th century is the moon landing and Mike Collins was part of it. "Carrying the Fire" certainly represents the best in space exploration literature as evidenced by continual strong sales even though it was published in 1974. If you care anything about the early space program and the Apollo 11 moon landing, look no further than "Carrying the Fire". You will love it. Thank you Mr. Collins for this wonderful book.

Michael Collins is one of the best pilots NASA ever saw, but you won't know that from this book. He is a very humble man who writes with wonderful humor and clarity. His story of his role in the race to the moon is interesting, informative, funny and absolutely incredible. He teaches physics,politics and good writing form in one incredible book. Because Collins is able to so clearly explain the science of flying, I highly recommend this book as a starting place for anyone interested in learning about the early days of the space program. To learn more about the respect others at NASA have for Mike Collins, I recommend "Deke!" and "Last Man on the Moon."

I hate reviews that alternatively gush or are entirely critical of an author's work. Such reviews could be boiled down to a simple "buy the book" or "don't buy the book". Having got that out of the way, this is the best autobiography I have ever read. Period.

Michael Collins has produced what should be the definitive text for any writing class and for any history class dealing with the latter half of the 20th Century. The writing is clear and concise. The technical subject matter does not overwhelm the human story. Humor is woven throughout (Collins alone in the bar telling the bartender that he's going "up there" - which earns him considerable distance from the bartender and no more drinks after the first). For someone who was literally one of the chosen few and came out on top in a competition among the "best of the best", the self-deprecating style is delightful and, quite frankly, refreshing. Nothing can be better than an important story, well told. This is it.

Three sad points, however. First, I am unaware that Michael Collins ever wrote another completely unique book (his second outing was a somewhat simplified version of this book). We are all poorer off as a result. Using this work as an example, I would buy a book on the pros and cons of wet socks if it was written by Michael Collins.

Second, while men like Michael Collins are probably still around, I am not sure that we are giving them the opportunity to show us the greatness we can achieve when we put our minds to it. This book reminds us that real heroes aren't judged on what their latest movie did at the box office or what their latest baseball contract is worth. Men like Collins signed on to risk their lives as part of a group accomplishing something that was truly exciting and worthwhile. Can any of us even name one astronaut from the latest shuttle or ISS mission (not including kid singers who want to buy a ride - or have others buy it for them)? The fact that times have changed so much from Collins' heydays is sad.

Third, this is the second copy of this book that I have had to purchase. Against my better judgment, I loaned my first copy to a friend (just who I can't now recall) and never saw it again. I'm telling the next guy who asks to borrow this one to go out and buy his own. I suggest you do the same.

And oh yeah - buy the book.

I thought Collins's book was the best of any I have read about the golden age of the US space program. Collins was funny; made me laugh out loud a bunch. I also recommend "Deke!" and "A Man on the Moon."

I read it, and re-read it. I couldn't put it down. Along with the information on the US Space program itself, it has insights into the family life of the astros as well as how they interacted with each other. As a bonus, a strong sense of humor comes through in the writing that makes the sometimes technical nature of the book spring to life. It is very entertaining! Far from a dry account of "I did this," you are left with a clearer sense of the incredible magnitude of the US Apollo and Gemini programs. If you ever wondered what went through those men's minds as they made history, this is the book for you! Thank you Mr. Collins!

The spate of new books on the Apollo era, probably spurred by the success of the Apollo 13 movie, has been a godsend to enthusiasts like me, but this one stands out not just for it being written by a participant in 1975, but also because Collins turns out to be a gifted writer with a refreshing openness and humor. It's rather a shame he's apparently found no other subject to whet his literary whistle since then, as this is probably the most 'readable' book on the space program to date. In fact the moment I finished it I turned right back to page 1 and started again -- it was that enjoyable.