Customer Reviews
Very good first hand account of that exciting time - By: Dickie Moore, 22 Oct 2008 
I bought this book along with Michael 'Mike' Collins' account Carrying the Fire: An Astronaut's Journeys & whilst i would suggest that Collins' book is overall a more enjoyable & entertaining read, The Last Man On The Moon kept me captivated for the vast majority of the 348 pages.
Cernan doesn't hold back at critisising his peers or questioning the many many dcisions made by NASA throughout this period & gives a very personal insight to the challenges & rewards of being an astronaut. You can't question the guts of a man who turned down a chance to walk on the moon on Apollo 16, preferring to risk waiting until he could command his own mission.
This is a must for the Apollo fan & a recommended autobiography otherwise. You won't want to put it down.
This book answers the question: What did it feel like? - By: C. Clayton, 31 Jul 2008 
When I started to read The Last Man on the Moon I wondered: What did it feel like to walkin space & on the moon? I got more than I bargained for. I enjoyed one of the greatest true adventures of all times when Cernan removed the shackles of the earth & took me to places where few have gone.
Cernan's book is exceptional at describing what it felt like to be an astronautin the 1960s & what it was like to walkin space & on the moon.
One of the parts I could relate to best was his descriptions of a space walk during a Gemini mission & his moon walks. His descriptions of a pressurized suit that was tough to move & navigatein were amazing. As a diver who has been to places such as the Galapagos islands (with cold waters) I know what its like to have a life support system & bulky suit. Cernan's descriptions helped me understand (just a little) what it is like to walkin space & on the moon.
There were many close callsin the space programs that were truly nail biters. For example, during the Apollo 10 mission Gene Cernan discusses Tom Stafford & himself spinning out of control while just above the moon. The countless hours of training & razor sharp skills of the astronauts saved them. Stafford pulled them out at the last couple of seconds just before they would have crashed into the moon.
There were also stories of tragedies such as the loss of the three menin the fire of Apollo 1. Everyone on the space program was deeply saddened. Afterwards everyone's resolve to go to the moon safely reached a new level of commitment.
The book is definitely a page turner with many amusing antidotes. One story that sticks outin my mind is when Cernan explains that the early astronauts were like rock stars (they could do almost anything they wanted to). For example, they would let there wives know they were coming homein the evening by flying right over their homes with their jets before landing at a local base (a true flyby). Then they would jump into their Corvettes & drive like a bats out of h**l to their homes screeching into the driveways. This is stuff that legends are made of.
Cernan writing style is engaging & fascinating. He is both a strong Critical Thinker & philosopher rolled into one.
For example,in one telling excerpt he discusses the importance of going to the moon as a commander, not just walking on it. His thoughts are summed up when he says: "I have always believed that destiny is a matter of personal choice, where you carefully think out your decision, consider the downside, accept the risk of being wrong, & press on."
Cernan eloquently writes about his passion for space travel when he says: "Our legacy is that humans are no longer shackled to the Earth. We opened the door to tomorrow, & our trips to another celestial body will rank as the ultimate triumphin the Age of Achievement. And for the price, it was the biggest bargainin history."
He goes on to say: "Sometimes it seems that Apollo came before its time. President Kennedy reached far into the twenty-first century, grabbed a decade of time & slipped it neatly into the 1960's & 1970s."
I have been fortunate to meet Gene Cernan on a few occasions at Astronaut gatheringsin the past couple of years. He is one of the greatest advocates for the space program & is a gentleman & a scholar. He still has a bouncein his step & a twinklein his eye...and I wouldn't be surprised if he has a little mischiefin him as well.
Once at a dinner I was sitting at Cernan's table & someone asked him whether seeing the moon was different from earth orbit or from the moon.
Gene Cernan got very quiet & thoughtful & said that it was entirely different. He went on to say that from orbit the earth is beautiful with its blue oceans, majestic large land masses & more. Then he paused & got very serious. He said from the moon the view of the earth was unbelievable. He went on to say that seeing this little blue ball that hungin black space by an invisible string (axis) that it turned on was unbelievable. You could seein his eyes that he had a life changing experience when he saw it from the front porch of the moon many years ago.
There are several excellent books on the early space program. The Last Man on the Moon is one of the best of the best.
The Re-Discovery of Common Sense: A Guide To: The Lost Art of Critical Thinking
Enthusiasm and candour. Among the best atronaut books. - By: , 21 Mar 2006 Up there with the Michael Collins biography as one of the best astronaut books, this first-person tale of Gene Cernan's NASA career engages not least because of the drama of his three famous missions.
Co-author Davis has helped Cernan tell a complicated storyin easy to understand language. Throughout, one picks up on the sheer enthusiasm of this astronaut: his awe & wonder at what he was lucky enough to do. Often self-depracating, he admits difficult moments - the horror of the spacewalk outside Gemini 9 & the frightening malfunction as he approached closer to the Moon than anyone before during Apollo 10, but conveys extremely well the controlled elation of the triumphant Apollo 17, including his & mankind's last steps on the Moon ... for now.
There are thirty-seven photos, the usual mix of family & space-related, the latter set containing little new for the Apollo enthusiast but no less relevant for that.
Do give this book a try. It's clear, interesting & bubbling over with enthusiasm.
Interested in the US Space Program...read this book. - By: , 03 Feb 2004 Whether you have a passing interestin the events surrounding the development of the US Space program leading up to putting Mankind on another planet, or are a serious enthusiast, this book will not disappoint you.
Eugene Cernan weaves a spellbinding account of his own personal involvement with the Apollo missions which led to him being the last man to stand on the surface of the moon.
It is a candid account told with the human element exposed to let the reader see what kind of men were selected to undertake such missions.
This book is a good read & is hard to put down once you embark on Mr Cernan's journey to the moon.
The Last Man On The Moon - By: Mr. David A. J. Bowden, 07 Nov 2003 Fantastic reading for anyone interestedin the Space Race of the 60's & 70's.
Gene Cernan is a true American Hero. His story gave a really good insight into his determination to succeedin life.
The story of his & the other familys having to endure the stress & worry of the space programme gave the whole book a more 'human' touch.
I also liked the 'no messing' approach to his 'lingo'in this book. One of my best reads to date.
