The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon: The Story of Apollo 11 Astronaut Michael Collins by Bea Uusma Schyffert #5

Schyffert, B. (1999). The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon: The Story of Apollo 11 Astronaut Michael Collins. San Francisco: Chronicle Books.

Grade Level

Third – seventh grade

Curriculum Link

Science

Author Credibility

Schyffert has illustrated more than ten books, but this one is the first she has illustrated and written.

Awards

2004 Boston Globe-Horn Nonfiction Honor Book
2004 Batchelder Honor Book
2004 ALA Notable Books for Children (Middle Readers)

Summary

This book is about a man I had never heard of named Michael Collins who played a kind of behind the scenes role during the Apollo 11 mission. While Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon, Michael Collins was in charge of the command module. He flew 14 times around the moon, and while on the dark side of the moon had no communication with anyone. This was a fascinating read with interesting facts, photos, and notes from Michael Collins himself.

National/State Standards

Earth and Space Science

Illustrations/Graphics

The illustrations used in this book are photographs taken from Earth and from space, diagrams of the Columbia spacecraft/rocket/lunar module, and simple drawings with information from the Apollo 11 mission.

Access Features

Important access features in this book include personal notes written by Michael Collins during the mission, facts about each of the three astronauts, checklists, and interesting information about what its was like being in space.

Use in my Classroom

I would use this book during a unit on space to discuss people who have contributed to the wealth of knowledge we now have about space.

My Response

This book is so interesting! I was really impressed with how this book was written with such fascinating detail and interesting information about space and the astronauts of the Apollo 11 mission. I had never heard of Michael Collins, however I had heard about Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin and their accomplishments. It was really interesting to read about someone that I didn`t know a thing about. This book was an accumulation of personal notes and interesting information the Apollo 11 mission from a different perspective, one from Michael Collins.

Related Texts

Astronauts: Life Exploring Outer Space by Chris Hayhurst
Flying to the Moon by Michael Collins
The Moon by Seymour Simon
Moon Landing: The Race for the Moon by Carole Stott
The Story of Apollo 11 by R. Conrad Stein