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Off the Planet: Surviving Five Perilous Months Aboard the Space Station Mir [Paperback]

Jerry M. Linenger (Author)

3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (44 customer reviews)

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Hardcover	CDN $19.50		--	--
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Product Details

Paperback: 256 pages
Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (Dec 12 2000)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 007137230X
ISBN-13: 978-0071372305
Product Dimensions: 21.3 x 13.7 x 2.5 cm
Shipping Weight: 363 g

Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (44 customer reviews)

Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,053,453 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Product Description

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Imagine yourself in a decaying space station far away from the atmosphere you never realized you needed so badly, not knowing if the next malfunction would kill you or merely keep you busy. Dr. Jerry M. Linenger experienced just this and describes his harrowing but ennobling five months aboard Mir in Off the Planet, a memoir that evokes the excitement of living every day as a life-threatening adventure. Linenger's very personal writing style draws the reader into the story quickly, breezing through his childhood, Annapolis training, medical school, and selection as an astronaut, then moving quickly to the Mir assignment and its aftermath.

Linenger isn't shy about sharing his opinions. Chapter titles like "Broken Trust" and "An Attempted Coverup" show his feelings about the bizarre relationship between the crew and mission control that may have kept him and his Russian comrades in constant danger. He also heaps praise on his fellow crew members and family for their strength and perseverance throughout the mission--between communication difficulties, the cloud of doubt surrounding the station's systems, and problems like fires and toxic fumes, it's a wonder anyone survived with their sanity intact. The full-color pictures accompanying the text add further insight into life aboard Mir. --Rob Lightner --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

'Off The Planet: Surviving Five Perilous Months Aboard the Space Station Mir' by Jerry M. Linenger is one of the most readable. Off the Planet sheds new light on such present developments as the Russians' determination to continue the Mir after their repeated commitments to abandon it, combined with their commitments to the International Space Station. The book makes one think that perhaps the United States would be better off partnering in space with, say, Somalia or Lower Slobovia. Russian Psychologist, cure thyself and thy kindred. (The Wahington Times ) --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Inside This Book (Learn More)

First Sentence
"YES, I ALWAYS WANTED to be an astronaut." Read the first page

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Customer Reviews

44 Reviews

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(2)

Average Customer Review

3.9 out of 5 stars (44 customer reviews)

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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Questionable, Mar 2 2001

Kate (Melbourne, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Off the Planet: Surviving Five Perilous Months Aboard the Space Station Mir (Paperback)

I wonder what political office or career that Dr Linenger has in mind. I found his book to be very self serving with little credit given to others. Obviously not a team player. "Dragonfly" is the better read and strikes a better balance.

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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A great book, despite Linenger's ego..., Feb 1 2000

"space-boy" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Off The Planet: Surviving Five Perilous Months Aboard The Space Station MIR (Hardcover)

I read this book after reading the superior 'Dragonfly' by Bryan Burrough, and I was hoping that Burrough's stories of Jerry Linenger's monumental ego were false. Sadly, this book confirms them all- Linenger even admits it (though he says he is not the worst of the astronauts). Some of the opening chapters grate somewhat because of this, as Linenger describes just what an incredibly sucessful specimen of humanity he thinks he is. (For an example of this writing style, see the review he has posted on this page- how he says he is still amazed what a good book he has written every time he rereads it.)

Linenger's book does get really good, though, when he gets to MIR. The description of the onboard fire make the whole book worth reading- the bonechilling image Linenger gives is the best I have read, and Linenger's description of the extent and danger of the fire shows just how much it was played down elsewhere at the time. Linenger also gives a wonderful picture of the sheer hard work of life on MIR that Burrough and Colin Foale never quite get across in their books on the same theme.

So, in all, a great read. In some ways, though, I hope it sells badly. Linenger needs the wind knocked out of his sails a bit.

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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Ego trip, July 19 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Off The Planet: Surviving Five Perilous Months Aboard The Space Station MIR (Hardcover)

The book has some interesting anecdotes about life on Mir, but Linengers ego and continuous whining about the Russian space program makes this quite a challenging read. Not recommended - get Dragonfly.

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Most recent customer reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars The truth about life on Mir
Jerry Linenger wrote "Off the Planet" to describe his out-of-this-world (literally) experiences on the Mir spacestation, as an American astronaut working with the Russians. Read more

Published on Jan 13 2004 by Shannon B Davis

5.0 out of 5 stars A Good Book About One Astronaut's Life Onboard Mir
Jerry Linenger is a former NASA astronaut who spent just over 132 days in space, most of it aboard the Russian space station Mir. During his stay, Dr. Read more

Published on Nov 4 2002 by John R. Keller