Alex Irvine (Portland, ME) has written more than thirty books, both original fiction and licensed work for Marvel, Hasbro, Warner Brothers, Fox, Blizzard, Legendary, and other international entertainment companies. He has also written comics (Daredevil Noir, Iron Man: Rapture, Hellstorm, Son of Satan: Equinox), games, and animation. The three games he’s currently writing—Marvel Avengers Alliance, Marvel War of Heroes, and Marvel PuzzleQuest—have together reached more than 75 million players. Ben Bishop (Portland,ME) is a comic creator who wrote, illustrated,and self-published his first book, the graphic novel Nathan the Caveman,in 2008. In 2011 he provided the illustrations for the award-winning book The Lost Trail, a graphic novel retelling of the famous Donn Fendler story Lost on a Mountain in Maine. Most recently Ben illustrated a short story for Archaia’s The Reason for Dragons and provided cover artwork for IDW’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series.
The Far Side of the Moon is a black-and-white nonfiction graphic novel about astronaut Michael Collins and the historic Apollo 11 moon-landing mission of 1969. The stark, visually striking artwork captures the loneliness and dangers of space travel. Readers of all ages will find The Far Side of the Moon a captivating and inspirational true story not only of scientific history, but also of human fortitude and ingenuity. Highly recommended, especially for high school and public library graphic novel collections. -- Library Bookwatch While Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin are household names, the only thing most people know about Michael Collins is that he didn't get to walk on the moon. Irvine and Bishop aim to remedy that with this graphic biography, which traces Collins's upbringing and NASA career through his selection for the Apollo 11 mission and his life afterward. Bishop works in a rough, schematic style, and his liberal use of swaths of black, accented with violet, makes the vastness of space felt in nearly every panel. -- PW