I can't imagine a more perfect book to read to capture the tension and excitement of the first manned mission to the moon's surface.

Ian Passingham's Apollo 11 is, as its cover promises, "the moon landing in real time." The book is organized in chapters, the first covering the "race to the moon" from 1957 to 1969, and then daily chapters beginning 14 days prior to launch, on through lift-off, the moon landing, the return to Earth and splashdown.

Each chapter has a series of brief, news-like entries (Passingham's sources, listed at the end, are mostly contemporary newspapers) explaining what was going on in the world at the time -- NASA's preparations, daily activities of the three astronauts, ongoing mission rehearsals by the massive land-bound team of scientists and doctors, responses from other world governments, protests by people who wanted resources spent instead on more earthly concerns, a Soviet attempt to land an unmanned probe on the moon and bring back samples ahead of the Apollo mission, and so on.

It's a fun, fast-paced look at the various thrills and anxieties that punctuated those thrilling days of optimism and uncertainty. Passingham's presentation is informative but also a bit breathless, hitting on interesting points and quickly moving on to the next. It's enjoyable, extremely educational and never, ever dull. And, because of the book's day-to-day format, readers will truly feel the build-up of anticipation and exhilaration, and at times it will put readers' nerves on end as things seem likely to go wrong (even though we all know it turned out OK). Passingham makes you feel like you were there, eagerly absorbing every bit of news and trivia on the mission you could find. You come to know Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins, their wives, the scientists and technicians who worked on the project, the politicians who played a role and even the people who flocked to Florida or other key locations to witness and celebrate the event.

This is the best book on NASA, the Apollo missions and the moon landing I have ever read, and I do not hesitate to recommend it to anyone with even a passing interest in America's early forays into space. Sadly, the ambitious predictions for future missions into space -- including moon colonies and manned flights to Mars -- have not come to pass.