The Apollo 13 Mission

Graphic Library Disasters in History

by Donald Lemke

Tells the dramatic story of the rescue of the Apollo 13 astronauts. Written in graphic-novel format.

Genres: Graphic Novels, History, Space, Comics, Picture Books, Nonfiction

32 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2006

About the author

Donald Lemke works as a children's book editor. He has written dozens of all-age comics and children's books for Capstone, HarperCollins, Running Press, and more. Donald lives in St. Paul, Minnesota with his beautiful wife, Amy, toddling toddler, Cleo, and a not-so-golden retriever named Paulie.

Reviews

[Stephen Snyder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very educational book, that I've used in many of my substitute teaching days. It really peak some students interest and they further researched the topic. Excellent book! Thank you Franklin Public Library for the loan.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I appreciate wanting to share the importance of NASA's "successful failure", I really wanted to like Lemke's The Apollo 13 Mission, but found his version distasteful. The book is set as a hardback comic book version and the illustrations do not resemble any of the people involved with respect to their appearances and their attitudes. Often the crew of Apollo 13 seemed angry and bitter with their predicament of the explosion and there wasn't enough detailed attention paid to the ground crew who worked with the astronauts to bring them home safely. Probably the most important detail was that until they returned home, Lovell, Haise, and Swigert rationed their drinking water to six ounces each per day until they touched down some six days later.

[C.G.Koens · Rating 3 out of 5]

This has always been a story from history that fascinated me, ever since watching the movie with Tom Hanks when it first came out when I was in junior high. Good content, perhaps glosses over it a bit, but a good starting point for a kid who's interested in space travel or this event in particular.

Three stars due to the use of "oh my g-d" in one instance (which I have Sharpie'd out)... there's just not reason for that, especially in a book for kids.

[Holly McLean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Donald B. Lemke's short paged, graphic novel 'The Apollo 13 Mission' was a nice light and enjoyable read. I understand that this would be considered more of a children's book but I liked how informative it was and enjoyable at the same time. I got to have a bigger insight on the apollo mission itself and learnt more on what exactly happened during the mission and how they rescued themselves. The fact is a graphic novel obviously made it more interesting and much more enjoyable than if I were to read a text book on the matter.

[Mara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this is a wonderful book for those who normally do not care to read. The book tells the factual and historical story of the Apollo 13 mission, however, it does so in a way that seems much more exciting. the pictures mixed with the story makes this a page turner and a must have in the classroom for the students who either have difficulty reading or dislike reading.

[Julie Heidingsfelder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Information: Published: 2006. I think this book would be a great browsing book for an inquiry unit. The format is graphic novel, so I think students would remain engaged throughout the book more than a traditional textbook or article.

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am continuing to check out young reader nonfiction books for my grandchildren. Having just visited Kennedy Space Center with the 3 of them, I felt this might be a good book to start them on.