Our shelves contain countless books on the history of space travel, illustrated with colourful images of the moon and names we have frequently read: Alan Shepard, first American in space, John Glenn who orbited earth, Neil Armstrong, first man on the moon, Elliot See …

Wait a minute. Who is Elliot See?

Then we discover that most books on the history of space travel do not mention his name at all. And closer examination reveals more unknown faces on NASA's group photos. Their accounts, told in this book, reveal the darker side of the American moon-landing myth. These men are the Forgotten Astronauts, those who failed and were erased from history - sometimes tragically, sometimes tragicomically - and who were for a long time hushed up about, not to cloud the worship of the heroes of the Space Age.