Far Side of the Moon: The Story of Apollo 11's Third Man

by Alex Irvine, Ben Bishop (Illustrator)

Overview

*Junior Library Guild Selection 2017*

A unanimous selection to the 2018 Maverick Graphic Novel List!

This graphic retelling of the Apollo 11 moon-landing mission follows astronaut Michael Collins, commander of the lunar orbiter, to the far side of the moon.

When the Earth disappears behind the moon, Collins loses contact with his fellow astronauts on the moon’s surface, with mission control at NASA, and with the entire human race, becoming more alone than any human being has ever been before. In total isolation for 21 hours, Collins awaits word that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin have managed to launch their moon lander successfully to return to the orbiter—a feat never accomplished before and rendered more problematic by the fuel burn of their difficult landing. In this singularly lonely and dramatic setting, Collins reviews the politics, science, and engineering that propelled the Apollo 11 mission across 239,000 miles of space to the moon.

Fountas & Pinnell Text Level U

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780884487593
Publisher:	Tilbury House Publishers
Publication date:	06/04/2019
Pages:	64
Product dimensions:	6.40(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.30(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Alex Irvine (Portland, ME) has written more than thirty books, both original fiction and licensed work for Marvel, Hasbro, Warner Brothers, Fox, Blizzard, Legendary, and other international entertainment companies. He has also written comics (Daredevil Noir, Iron Man: Rapture, Hellstorm, Son of Satan: Equinox), games, and animation. The three games he’s currently writing—Marvel Avengers Alliance, Marvel War of Heroes, and Marvel PuzzleQuest—have together reached more than 75 million players.

Ben Bishop (Portland,ME) is a comic creator who wrote, illustrated,and self-published his first book, the graphic novel Nathan the Caveman,in 2008. In 2011 he provided the illustrations for the award-winning book The Lost Trail, a graphic novel retelling of the famous Donn Fendler story Lost on a Mountain in Maine. Most recently Ben illustrated a short story for Archaia’s The Reason for Dragons and provided cover artwork for IDW’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series.

Editorial Reviews

"While Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin are household names, “the only thing most people know about Michael Collins is that he didn’t get to walk on the moon.” Irvine and Bishop aim to remedy that with this graphic biography, which traces Collins’s upbringing and NASA career through his selection for the Apollo 11 mission and his life afterward. Bishop works in a rough, schematic style, and his liberal use of swaths of black, accented with violet, makes the vastness of space felt in nearly every panel."

PW - The Far Side of the Moon: The Story of Apollo 11’s Third Man

02/20/2017
While Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin are household names, “the only thing most people know about Michael Collins is that he didn’t get to walk on the moon.” Irvine and Bishop aim to remedy that with this graphic biography, which traces Collins’s upbringing and NASA career through his selection for the Apollo 11 mission and his life afterward. Bishop works in a rough, schematic style, and his liberal use of swaths of black, accented with violet, makes the vastness of space felt in nearly every panel. Unfortunately, Irvine’s writing tends to be flat and halting, as well as repetitive (“They were about to try to do something that no one in the history of the human race had ever done”; “Collins and Armstrong had just pulled off a flight maneuver that no one in history had ever done before”). Direct quotations from Collins appear occasionally, though their sourcing isn’t always clear. Bishop’s spec-like images of equipment and rocket trajectories aid substantially in understanding the challenges these astronauts faced. Ages 8–12. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

"The Far Side of the Moon is a black-and-white nonfiction graphic novel about astronaut Michael Collins and the historic Apollo 11 moon-landing mission of 1969. The stark, visually striking artwork captures the loneliness and dangers of space travel. Readers of all ages will find The Far Side of the Moon a captivating and inspirational true story not only of scientific history, but also of human fortitude and ingenuity.

Highly recommended, especially for high school and public library graphic novel collections."

Library Bookwatch - The Graphic Novel Shelf

"While Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin are household names, “the only thing most people know about Michael Collins is that he didn’t get to walk on the moon.” Irvine and Bishop aim to remedy that with this graphic biography, which traces Collins’s upbringing and NASA career through his selection for the Apollo 11 mission and his life afterward. Bishop works in a rough, schematic style, and his liberal use of swaths of black, accented with violet, makes the vastness of space felt in nearly every panel."

PW - The Far Side of the Moon: The Story of Apollo 11’s Third Man

05/01/2017
Gr 5–8—Everyone knows Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, but how many people can reliably name Apollo 11's third man, the one who is most known for not getting to walk on the moon? Irvine and Bishop look to increase that number by focusing on the experiences of Michael Collins while telling the story of the moon landing in graphic format. Collins was the first person to walk in space twice and the first to orbit the moon. The pace of this title is fairly slow, as the narrative meanders between a straightforward account of the events of and leading up to the Apollo 11 mission and flashbacks to the Gemini 10 mission. Technical illustrations of spacesuits and rocket stages are included, and Irvine covers the daily tasks Collins was responsible for to keep the command module functioning. Bishop's illustrations stick to a limited palette (black, white, and purple) but are versatile, showing great contrast among the technical drawings, scenes taking place on Earth, and those in the vastness of space. One of the standout sequences is the cinematic spread of the launch, with a sketchy close-up of Collins in the second panel that effectively brings to life this momentous occasion. VERDICT Readers looking for an exciting graphic novel adventure may be disappointed, but true space enthusiasts will appreciate the details that shed light on the reality of being part of the lunar mission. For larger collections seeking additional materials on space.—Kacy Helwick, New Orleans Public Library

School Library Journal

2016-12-21
An account of the first moon landing, with special focus on Michael Collins, the astronaut who stayed aloft in the command module."The only thing most people know about Michael Collins is that he didn't get to walk on the moon," writes Irvine, who then works to fill in details of his subject's career before, during, and after his multiple stints in space. This effort is particularly lifeless, though, as bland generalities ("Michael Collins worked hard and waited for his chance") and at best only glancing references to his family, to medical issues, to his spacesuit-design work, to his lively sense of humor—which infuses his autobiography for young readers, Flying to the Moon and other Strange Places (1976)—and to anything that he's done since 1976 leave him a distant figure. Bishop's drab, sketchy duotone scenes and schematic diagrams likewise keep Collins and the space program's dramatic achievements at arm's length; capsules and rockets are small on the page; human figures who aren't anonymous beneath faceless helmets are barely recognizable; and the artist offers only perfunctory historical renditions of astronaut gear, control boards, and the like. Along with Flying to the Moon (for those who can find it), Bea Uusma Schyffert's The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon (2003) offers a more animated, informative picture of Collins, Apollo, and the space program in general. Uninspired: reads and looks like a rough draft. (timeline, bibliography) (Graphic nonfiction. 11-13)

Kirkus Reviews