Von Braun: Dreamer of Space, Engineer of War

This book is not only an outstanding objective analysis of the life of Wernher von Braun, but also an excellent history of German and U.S. rocket development. As an author of two non-fiction books myself, I can attest to the enormous amount of work that goes into research for a book of this type. Dr. Neufeld provides a great deal of new and fascinating information on von Braun's early career as the architect of the Nazi rocket program that led to the bombing of England with the "buzz-bomb" and V-2 rockets that were developed under his guidance. Neufeld's study of the U.S. rocket program under von Braun's leadership is no less compelling. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the history of rocketry and the space program.

The career of Wernher von Braun has been a subject of investigation, and not a little controversy, almost from the time that the German rocketeer came to the United States after World War II. There is no question in my mind that "Von Braun: Dreamer of Space, Engineer of War" will be recognized as a seminal addition to the literature of space history and biography. In this book Michael J. Neufeld, the chair of the Division of Space History at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum and a longtime friend and colleague of mine (so I confess that I am not totally unbiased in my assessment), traces the career of one of the most important rocket developers and champions of space exploration during the period between the 1930s and the 1970s. He went on to a stellar career (pun intended) in rocketry and spaceflight. Neufeld argues that von Braun should be remembered for four major accomplishments: (1) Developing the world's first ballistic missile, the V-2, for Germany during World War II. (2) Popularizing space exploration in the U.S. in the 1950s through a succession of articles, speeches, public appearances, and television broadcasts. The most important of these were the famed "Collier's" series of articles and the three Disney TV programs. (3) Launching the first U.S. satellite to orbit the Earth, Explorer 1, in January 1958, a significant rejoinder to the Sputnik launches of the fall of 1957. (4) Leading the technical development of the largest successful rocket ever built, the Saturn V launcher that took the Apollo astronauts to the Moon in the 1960s and 1970s. Neufeld's core thesis revolves around what he refers to as a "Faustian bargain" for von Braun; he was consumed with exploring space but to enable that goal he spent the majority of his career building sophisticated weapons of destruction. Not until 1960 did he work for NASA, an organization dedicated to the peaceful exploration of space. Previously, military organizations had employed von Braun to build missiles. This thesis gets to the heart of a longstanding controversy over von Braun's motivations and a belief in his basic opportunism. Because he was willing to build a ballistic missile for Hitler's Germany, with all of connotations that implied in the devastation and terror of World War II, many of his ideals have been questioned and criticized. For some he was a visionary who foresaw the potential of human spaceflight, but for others he was little more than an arms merchant who developed brutal weapons of mass destruction. As Neufeld shows, in what will be viewed as a major benchmark in this historiographical debate, von Braun seems to have been something of both. The subtleties of this analysis are path breaking and will be significant for all interested in exploring seriously the history of spaceflight. This biography will be the starting point for all future investigation of the life and career of this fascinating, perplexing, and complex individual.

I've read a number of biographies, including "Dr. Space", "The Rocket Team", and the one by Ernst Stuhlinger and Frederick Ordway. But none go so far as to give one an idea of who Wernher von Braun really was as a person. In Neufeld's book, all the pieces of the puzzle come together in a thoughtful, fair, and well-balanced presentation. If there is one biography to read about Wernher von Braun, this one is it. I would also recommend Project MARS: A Technical Tale, The Voice of Dr. Wernher von Braun: An Anthology (Apogee Books Space Series) and Michael Neufeld's The Rocket and the Reich: Peenemünde and the Coming of the Ballistic Missle Era.

When I first learn about this book I thought to myself:"What else can be written about Von Braun that I don't know"? After reading everything that was published during the years on the topic, it must be an immense undertaking, to create yet another Von Braun book, but, as I got the book, I saw immediately that this is by no means "another Von Braun book". There are many revelations, new stories and new interpretations on the deeds of Von Braun, especially in his NASA career. The amount of work and details is just stager ring, and the result is breathtaking. You can almost feel that you are in the meeting rooms at Marshal space flight center at the height of discussions on various Apollo and Saturn alternatives. This book is with no doubt the best book ever to be published on the life and work of Wherner Von Braun, and will serve the space historians community as the definitive source for years to come. The author does not make Von Braun any discounts, and when he has criticism on him or on his decisions at NASA (and of course on the WW2 period) we get to see a balanced account of the events. A must have book and important addition to the history of spaceflight, on this jubilee year of the Sputnik launch. Tal Inbar Head Space Research Center Fisher Institute for Air and Space Strategic Studies