The story of the first lunar landing unfolds from an unexpected perspective in The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon: The Story of Apollo 11 Astronaut Michael Collins by Bea Uusma Schyffert. While Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon, Collins maintained control of the command module, orbiting the moon 14 times. Featuring an eye-catching design and foil jacket, this book includes facts, checklists, personal notes and photos taken from Earth and from space, revealing what Collins saw, did and thought about during Apollo 11's historic mission. (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Collins, the astronaut who remained in orbit while Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the moon's surface, is the ostensible focus of what is basically a general overview of the entire [cf2]Apollo 11[cf1] journey. Photos, drawings, and reproductions give the volume a stunning appearance, but the facts are presented in a scattershot manner--making this well-designed book more impressionistic than informational. Glos. From HORN BOOK Spring 2004, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Gr 4-7-Unusual page design and a fine array of memorable, seldom-mentioned details make this an irresistible invitation to travel along with the astronaut who stayed aloft while Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon. In a narrative interspersed with the crew's r?sum?s, handwritten passages from Collins's notes, candid family and mission snapshots, control panel and spacesuit diagrams, lists of personal items that Apollo astronauts brought to the moon, the sometimes-quirky things they left there, and more, Schyffert both humanizes the experience of going into space and captures a sense of what a technical achievement it was and is. (The procedural checklists alone weighed 20 pounds and were referred to by the astronauts as the "fourth passenger.") Closing with notes about the later careers of all three Apollo 11 astronauts, and a final quote from the command module pilot, "We're lucky to have this planet. I know," this book will inspire any child intrigued by the past or future of space exploration to track down Collins's own old-but-still-fresh Flying to the Moon (Farrar, 1994).-John Peters, New York Public Library (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Gr. 3-6. It's bad enough to go somewhere and have to wait alone in the car, but what if you traveled all the way to the moon and had to stay in the spacecraft? This is the story of Michael Collins, the astronaut on the 1969 Apollo 11 moon mission who did not walk on the moon. His job was to maneuver the capsule and wait while Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed the lunar module and planted the first footprints into moon dust. For 14 lonely turns, Collins circled the moon: The only thing between him and outer space is some insulation and a thin sheet of metal. More than a trip to the Smithsonian, even more than viewing the film Apollo 13, this excellent book--illustrated scrapbook-style with a cleverly presented mix of photographs, illustrations, and charts--communicates the excitement of space travel. Details about the Columbia--equipment, food (frosted flakes and peanut cubes), and the sights and smells--will fascinate readers. Schyffert does a brilliant job of capturing the enormity of space travel during this suspenseful journey. --Karin Snelson Copyright 2003 Booklist