When the Moon was White

Many stories have been written about the sixties, the decade of the Moon Race, and this literary novel, serious at its core but whimsical in its prose, takes a unique look at the fate of the moon during that decade. Samuel Thwaite is looking for a place to put his stamp on. He chooses Goodmews, a laid-back American town known for its bright moon, and persuades the residents to let him establish the world’s first Moon Centre. NASA funds the Centre, and while Goodmews thrives, Thwaite becomes obsessed with achieving something grander, that will last forever. He enlists a rogue NASA engineer, and together they develop a plan. They will use a moon rocket to spread paint over a giant crater so the moon will no longer look white. By chance, Banno, the Moon Centre guard, discovers the plan. He knows he should tell someone, but he has signed NASA’s oath of secrecy, and prides himself on keeping his word.