Chasing the Moon: How America Beat Russia in the Space Race

Robert Stone and Alan Andres William Collins £9.99 • PB

In 1899, a 17-year-old Robert Goddard climbs a cherry tree. While up there, he decides to devote his life to making rockets to reach other planets. Such a casually startling vignette is typical of Chasing the Moon, the companion volume to the US Apollo documentary. It recounts the stories that lack the footage to make it into the final cut, focusing on key ideas that led to the lunar landings, those who conceived them and the fascinating ways they interact.

We start with a portrait of teenage ‘Archie’ C Clarke buying his first rocketry book in WH Smith, then switch to that book’s writer, science fiction editor – and Goddard confidant – David Lasser, who gets fired for his socialism. We meet contrasting German rocket scientists: pacifist Willy Ley and war-tainted Wernher von Braun, only one of whom gets hired by the US government. We move onto NASA personnel, with Frank Borman’s Apollo 1 accident enquiry testament saving Apollo.

Space and social progress prove intertwined. Edward Dwight is JFK’s choice as first black astronaut, until institutional racism pushes back; female mission controller Poppy Northcutt becomes a feminist icon. Clarke moves to Sri Lanka for its tolerant views on sexuality. As von Braun launches a telecom satellite, he gets Clarke a ground station – making him an early adopter of global connectivity.

This kaleidoscopic work is not standard space history – more focused on why than how – but is recommended. ★★★★★