Customer Reviews

NASA: The Complete Illustrated History

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Michael Gorn has prepared an engaging volume on the space age. His NASA: The Complete Illustrated History is a lively and richly illustrated account of the organization that led and contines to lead America's ever-evolving space program. The book is a welcome addition to the historical literature on space exploration--and it will appeal to the general reader and specialist alike. Popular perceptions of NASA focus almost exclusively on the post-1958 era, when the organization oversaw America's successful effort to land a man on the Moon. As Gorn shows, the story is much larger than this particular epoch. In its first incarnation, NASA was known as NACA, when the organization played a pivotal role on the cutting edge of aviation design. Gorn's lively narrative tells this story along with the dramatic era of space exploration. This comprehensive approach gives the book unique character, allowing the reader to comprehend the entire sweep of aerospace history. No less important, Gorn is attentive to the role of key personalitise, some known and others lesser known to the general public. One of the most impressive dimensions of this beautifully designed book is the masterful way it matches images to the story line of the text. Most stunnning arguably are the color images showcasing the Apollo and Shuttle flights: the reader acquires a keen appreciation for the technical sophistication of rocketry and the sheer size/drama of space flight. I enthusiastically endorse this book as a meaningful way to appreciated the origins, development, and impact of NASA on the twentieth century.

Von Hardesty
National Air and Space Museum

I was an engineer on Gemini and Apollo and found many technical and historical errors in this book (i.e., pg 131, Apollo 11 launched on July 17?). The book is also very poorly organized. Check it out of the library.

As a former aeronautical engineer for British Aerospace I found this book fascinating. It gives a very comprehensive account of Nasa's history, also covering its sometimes forgotten predecessor NACA. The layout of the book is superb, making it appeal to both hardened aerospace enthusiasts and the average layman. Some of the colour illustrations are stunning.
This book is a must for anyone interested in Nasa, aerospace and its history.

In answer to David Shomper's review of NASA: The Complete Illustrated History, potential buyers should be aware of two things:

1. The paperback edition has been thoroughly revised. Mr. Shomper reviewed the original, hardbound version.

2. There is a noteworthy, positive review of the book by Prof. James R. Hansen, perhaps the foremost air and space historian in America, recently posted on Amazon.

This is a great coffee-table book, and makes for great conversation. Got it for my dad for Christmas last year (2007) after finding out that he wanted to be an astronaut as a child. It's a large book, with a lot of really fascinating pictures. I can't speak for its technical merit, but it is a very interesting book.

Would definitely recommend :-D

This is an outstanding book whose stellar and insightful text more than matches its wonderfully stunning and extremely well-chosen photography. Its author, Dr. Michael Gorn, is one of our country's great aerospace historians, with many years of significant scholarly and public education accomplishments behind him. He knows how to explain the complexities of American space history and does so always in very clear and engaging prose. I was especially impressed with Gorn's treatment of the remarkable record of NASA's organizational predecessor, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). This volume, after spending a number of months on my coffee table, now occupies an honored place on my shelves of important books about NASA and the U.S. space program.

Finally!!! A book that my kids will pick up. As a middle school teacher with an interest in the space program, this book is an excellent reference that my students use frequently. Gorn nails the history of NASA with this one. A wonderfully written text, accompanied with superb illustrations makes this book a great read and a must have to any space enthusiast.

This is a great product if you are interested in space, space shuttles, Apollo and NASA. You can view full coloured pics and loads of information. This book shows how NASA became NASA. It have every thing you need for space information. It seems its like you are at NASA but anyway it is a great book.

This is an excellent photographic and editorial volume covering NASA's first 50 years of manned space exploration! The photographs are outstanding, many never published before now.

For fifty years, NASA has been exploring humanity's true final frontier - space. "NASA: The Complete Illustrated History" covers its complete history, from even before there was a NASA - its roots as The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics. A through telling of NASA's stories, complete with beautiful black and white photographs in the early years to full color photographs of the later years. "NASA: The Complete Illustrated History" is a top pick for any fan of awe-inspiring photographs and astronautical history.