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ON THE face of it, the many books hitting the shelves for the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11鈥檚 moon landing are merely a response to our desire to learn more about the people involved and the place they visited as the birthday jollies get under way. But dig a little and you might feel, as I did, that they are responding to something deeper.

With earthly problems that range from swine flu to crunched credit, there is increasingly a 鈥渨hy bother?鈥� attitude to space exploration 鈥� one that has gathered momentum for a decade or more. Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin鈥荣 autobiography, , leads the field of new releases, and provides the antidote to those insisting we remain earthbound.

Never one to talk down his own achievements or those of the Apollo programme, he has been known to engage in fisticuffs when his accomplishments have been questioned. That makes for good reading. But where Aldrin really scores with this, his second autobiography, is in the sections covering his descent into depression and alcoholism, and his eternal status as the 鈥渟econd man on the moon鈥�. The candid portrayal of his earthly battles 鈥� often written with great humour 鈥� make this a cut above the rest.

Reading between the lines, Aldrin鈥檚 depression set in almost immediately after the return-from-the-moon empties were flung into the trash. Let鈥檚 face it, what the hell do you do after walking on the moon? TV ads for lawnmowers, it seems. And so you begin to understand how 鈥渕agnificent desolation鈥� not only summed up his opinion of the moon but also his developing state of mind.

鈥淟et鈥檚 face it, what the hell do you do after walking on the moon? TV ads for lawnmowers, it seems鈥�

Then came his affair, his arrest, his divorce and ultimately his alcoholism 鈥� an almost natural reaction to an upbringing by an authoritarian father, followed by rigid military service. Even here, though, Aldrin relieves the tension with gallows humour. When his psychiatrist questioned whether he was suicidal he played on his famous indecisiveness by replying no, 鈥淚 couldn鈥檛 make up my mind how to do it鈥�.

Of his 鈥渟econd man鈥� epithet, so many apocryphal stories abound regarding Aldrin鈥檚 desire 鈥� and that of his overbearing father 鈥� to be first on the moon and of his attempts to change the minds of NASA officials, that it鈥檚 been difficult to ascertain what might or might not be true. Aldrin refutes them all, if with a slight change of emphasis from his , saying that being the 鈥渟econd man鈥� only started to trouble him upon his return. Under standard NASA protocol, Aldrin 鈥� the junior crew member 鈥� would have been first to leave the lunar module, but Neil Armstrong was chosen to do it.

Whatever the truth, and we must be prepared to believe Aldrin鈥檚 account, it would be impossible, after losing priority, for that not to become a keystone of one鈥檚 psyche 鈥� a psyche described by Aldrin鈥檚 psychiatrist as inherently 鈥渟elfish鈥�. Aldrin is not entirely forthcoming over whether this was a key factor in his subsequent depression and alcoholism, but it鈥檚 difficult to believe otherwise, especially in so ambitious a man.

Yet Aldrin delights in telling us he was the first man to pee on the moon. And, more esoterically, he was also the first man to take Christian communion there (Armstrong did not). Intriguingly, it is something he now regrets for its exclusivity 鈥� he was there, as the clich茅 goes, for all mankind, not just American Christians.

To outsiders, Aldrin often seemed difficult to warm to (his fellow astronauts are often quoted as saying much the same); a somewhat self-aggrandising self-publicist with a personality he seemed determined to stamp on the Apollo programme. Yet having read this book, I have more sympathy for his character and circumstances. His sense of humour was often concealed behind the persona he, or more pertinently, NASA, wished to project. And despite his Christian convictions, he wouldn鈥檛 stand for proselytising fools. Read the story about him decking the Bible-wielding TV interviewer who was convinced Aldrin had never walked on the moon. As Jay Leno said: 鈥淲ay to go Buzz!鈥� Even his fellow astronauts were won over by the punch he threw.

And, to a point, I was won over by his words. When reading autobiographies, I鈥檝e often been disappointed to find that my heroes are either mundane or dislikable. Pleasingly, Aldrin鈥檚 has the converse effect.

Great holiday reading then, in contrast to Rick Stroud鈥檚 , a miscellany with attitude that鈥檚 great for dipping in and out of. Among the many chapters, you鈥檒l find 鈥淔acts and Figures鈥� for stats fans, 鈥淕ods and Myths鈥� for the less rational, and 鈥淎stronauts, Cosmonauts and Lunar Exploration鈥� for those who prefer their Aldrins to their Alignaks (Inuit moon god). Did you know the moon has an atmosphere? Not much of one, but it鈥檚 not the complete vacuum of legend. Or that its crust is much thicker on the far side than on the near side? If you learn everything in here you might even be able to hold your own in an argument with Aldrin, although it might be worth genning up with Craig Nelson鈥檚 , too.

Nelson delves into the lives of all three Apollo 11 astronauts. It is at once sympathetic to them, yet scathing when digging out their character defects. Armstrong, while widely admired by colleagues, is described variously as 鈥渇ervently nonsocialising鈥� through to 鈥渁cidly pungent鈥�. You quickly conclude that command module pilot was the affable one. He tried to foster camaraderie but came up against the enigma that was Armstrong and the multiple issues we know made up Aldrin鈥檚 personality.

鈥淲hile admired by colleagues, Armstrong is described as 鈥榝ervently nonsocialising鈥欌��

Yet Nelson goes way beyond Apollo 11. He looks at the Soviet programme, from its early lead via Sputnik and Yuri Gagarin through to its pursuit of NASA during the 1960s. He takes the whole story back to basics, from its unplanned nativity in Germany during the second world war as the V2 rocket was being prepared to destroy the UK, right through the cold war to the potential future in which Apollo 11 had failed and President Nixon was intoning the astronauts鈥� epitaph in a eulogy penned in advance by speechwriter William Safire.

What does Rocket Men tell us about Aldrin鈥檚 鈥渟econd man鈥� dilemma? recalls Aldrin lobbying hard among fellow astronauts to be first, apparently irritating many. Significantly, Collins said that after the final decision, Aldrin鈥檚 attitude took a turn towards 鈥済loom and introspection鈥�. With Nelson鈥檚 impeccable research, his ability to tie the myriad strings of the space race into a coherent whole and the power of the story itself, this and Magnificent Desolation should be at the top of your book list.

But of course, an anniversary such as this 鈥� especially one so photogenic 鈥� cannot pass without its share of coffee-table books. edited by Robert Jacobs showcases each surviving astronaut鈥檚 favourite photographs from the missions. With such a wealth to choose from they are, of course, superb.

My personal choices would be commander 鈥荣 secretary Martha Caballero wishing him luck before the Apollo 13 mission, a tiny, distant Apollo 15 lunar module alone on the moon鈥檚 surface, and a filthy, unshaven Cernan after his second moonwalk. And Aldrin鈥檚 photo of the Apollo 11 landing site (pictured) is the only good picture that exists of Armstrong on the surface of the moon. Some people have read great significance into that, given Aldrin鈥檚 back story 鈥� the simple truth is that Armstrong hogged the camera.

Piers Bizony鈥檚 , which also features this picture, makes use of the seemingly endless visual imagery of the Apollo era, but scores by adding the author鈥檚 thoughtful essay on Apollo. It is a coffee-table book with intellect and Bizony鈥檚 knowledge of Apollo shines as much as the book鈥檚 glossy pages. Bizony is also a joint author of , the biography of Gagarin, possibly the finest spaceman life story ever written.

Andrew Chaikin鈥檚 picks up where Andrew Smith鈥荣 left off, giving us the perspective of the men who flew the Apollo missions. While visually more pleasing, however, it adds little more than photos 鈥� admittedly fine ones 鈥� to Smith鈥檚 earlier work. But if you haven鈥檛 got a copy of Moondust and want something to adorn your home, that鈥檚 a good enough excuse to buy Chaikin鈥檚 book. I鈥檇 discreetly remove the pictures of Armstrong鈥檚 鈥渙ne small step鈥�, though, if Buzz were popping round for coffee.