Light This Candle

The definitive biography of Alan Shepard America’s first man in space with a new Foreword by Chris Kraft “One of the finest books ever written about the space program.”—Homer Hickan author of Rocket Boys “A wonderful and gripping biography . . . meticulously reported in the best tradition of David Halberstam.”—Buzz Bissinger New York Times bestselling author of Friday Night Lights Alan Shepard was the brashest cockiest and most flamboyant of America’s original Mercury Seven but he was also regarded as the best. Intense colorful and dramatic he was among the most private of America’s public figures and until his death in 1998 he guarded the story of his life zealously.  Light This Candle based on Neal Thompson’s exclusive access to private papers and interviews with Shepard’s family and closest friends—including John Glenn Wally Schirra and Gordon Cooper—offers a riveting action-packed account of Shepard’s life.