Red Moon Rising

Sputnik and the Hidden Rivals That Ignited the Space Age

By: Matthew Brzezinski

Narrated by: Charles Stransky

Length: 11 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's summary

On October 4, 1957, a time of Cold War paranoia, the Soviet Union secretly launched the Earth's first artificial moon. No bigger than a basketball, the tiny satellite was powered by a car battery. Yet, for all its simplicity, Sputnik stunned the world.

Based on extensive research in the US and newly opened archives in the former USSR, Red Moon Rising tells the story of five extraordinary months in the history of technology and the rivalry between two superpowers. It takes us inside the Kremlin and introduces the Soviet engineer Korolev, the charismatic, politically-minded visionary who motivated Khruschev to support what others dismissed as a ridiculous program. Korolev is virtually unknown to most Americans, yet it is because of him that NASA exists, that college loan programs were started in the U.S., and that Kennedy and Johnson became presidents.

Character driven, suspenseful, and dramatic, Red Moon Rising unveils the politics, people, science, and mindset behind a critical and transformative world event.

©2007 Matthew Brzezinski (P)2007 HighBridge Company

Critic reviews

"The writing is fast-paced and crisp...Yet even more than his absorbing narrative, Brzezinski's final analysis has staying power." ( Publishers Weekly)

Informative, straight-forward.

I liked the book. Some interesting history and the background to the dawn of the space race. The narrator had a tone and pace that was neither over-bearing or monotonous.

Narrator got lost on the way to a b-grade thriller

The book does manage to be informative and interesting, but seemingly in spite of itself. The narration makes the worst of purple prose by reading it off like a movie trailer. The try-hard prose would've been unfortunate enough if read normally, but the dramatic reading veers into outright irritating. Ending chapters with "sinister climax! Suspense!" sound bites is just insult added to injury. The subject matter is interesting enough on its own; the flair actively detracts.

Above average and well balanced

This is a well written book about a time when Americans awoke to find the skies had changed.

Bringing together both the technology and political situations of the time, with information from the Soviet side, it tells the story not only of the first satellite, but how personalities played a role in it's launch. It also points to the problems the post war American build up enhanced the Soviet's seeking to display an ability not yet possessed by the Americans.

The often times demeaning attitudes held by political leaders playing a large part in Nikita Khrushchev's desire, to proceed with a program which would focus the worlds attention towards the heavens.

Great Listen - Gripping Story

This is one of the few audiobooks I've managed to listen to "cover to cover" (twice, at that). The writing style and the narrator make this as much an engaging story as it is a history lesson. The focus is on the race to put a satellite in space and the aftermath, but the story also sets up the origins of the space race in a broader sense.
Listening to this book made me want to know more about the "characters" that drive the story; Korolev and the Russian scientists, Von Braun and his rockets, and even the political players.
I'd love to see more books written in this style that cover other phases of the space race as well.

A great story about the history of space travel

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I recommend this book to anyone interested in understanding the story behind the Sovjet space program. You will also learn a lot about their early missile program, and how the Sovjet leaders thought about space travel.

What about Charles Stransky’s performance did you like?

Charles is a great narrater, that made this story interesting and easy to listen to, also for a person that don't have English as their first language (like myself)

Good book.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Great book. Recommend to anyone wanting to learn about the beginning of the Space Race.

Really good

Any additional comments?

It's a thrill to hear the story of the Space Race from the Soviets' perspective. I loved every bit of this.

Fascinating history

Wish it didn't end. Political history dense as well as technical. So much went on behind what the public new at the time that came out years later that this book reveals.

Fascinating reading!

This was an amazing read as it combines the scientific discoveries with the political climate of the time. I have read a bunch of American space exploration books the best among them being the “the right stuff”. But this is my first foray into the space exploration in the USSR.

I would highly recommend this book of you liked the books on the early days of NASA.

Outstanding

Excellent writing - so much historic facts and very objective behind the scenes information. I have listened to about 25 audiobooks so far in this year and this is the one I have enjoyed the most. Charles Stransky as narrator also did a great job - his reading style and the voice makes listening joyful and I hope there will be more books coming out narrated by him.