Shoot for the Moon: The Space Race and the Extraordinary Voyage of Apollo 11

The tale of America's journey to the moon still ignites the imagination of people worldwide a half-century later. Donovan (The Blood of Heroes) recounts the saga of the space race and the journey to the moon by describing the political motivation for developing a space program, specifically the perceived threat by the Soviet Union of the spread of communism and a nuclear attack. After capturing Wernher von Braun and his team of German engineers who designed the lethal long-range ballistic missiles during World War II and assimilating them into NASA, the United States was able to develop a rocket capable of launching a spaceship. Donovan then documents the Mercury and Gemini missions that were necessary to prepare astronauts for voyaging and working in space. He concludes with the Apollo missions and the historic landing on the moon by Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins.