“Is this satire?”

I guess the most valuable insight into Frank Borman is already detailed in the author’s note of this book. Frank Borman did not keep any mementos of either his time in the army or at NASA. He valued modesty, and the most important thing to him was his family, specifically his wife Susan. And if Frank Borman wanted to ensure that no cult of personality was built around him, then this book accomplishes just that.

The last book I read on the Apollo era was Deke Slayton’s autobiography, "Deke!". It’s a painfully dry read, and Slayton didn’t care much for self-aggrandizing or giving much insight into the major milestones of the Space Race. But the book did introduce me to Frank Borman, his role in the investigation of the Apollo 1 tragedy, and his command of Apollo 8. That’s why I was excited for this book.

Unfortunately, this book is the polar opposite of "Deke!": biographical information is kept even sparser, with the focus being on Frank and Susan’s love story. Rather than the dry and stiff narration in "Deke!", "Far Side of the Moon" opts for a kitsch portrayal of its two protagonists. The chosen narrative technique (third-person omniscient with interspersed dialogue) is made all the more unbearable to listen to by the narrator, who uses the most corny voice differentiation you will likely come across in a non-fiction book (if this book can even be placed in this category). By Chapter 3, you will feel like you are watching somebody perform a hand puppet theatre. I played 30 seconds of this book to my girlfriend before she asked me if this was satire.

I did some basic research to ensure I’m not doing either the author or the narrator any injustice, but it turns out the book was NOT written or narrated by Borman’s 12-year-old granddaughter, which would have explained much of what I described above.

Listening to 10 hours of this book will not only guarantee bleeding ears but will also leave you none the wiser regarding who Frank Borman was. I guess that was the overall goal of this book in the first place.

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