Into that silent sea : trailblazers of the Space Era, 1961-1965 /

French and Burgess's space history differs from previous ones in being focused on individual actors in this drama--primarily the travelers, but including others in support roles. They interviewed two dozen astronauts and cosmonauts, nine others involved, and eleven space historians. Their book is evenhanded, with five chapters for the US and five for the USSR. The date in the title is misleading: the book is about the actors in 1961-65, but it traces their careers either to their death or to recent times. A majority of these space travelers had a childhood interest in flying and were recruited from a pool of military pilots or test pilots. There were women in both the US and USSR who wanted to become space travelers, and the authors explain why Valentina Tereshkova became one, two decades before Sally Ride. Practically all space travelers wanted another trip, but few got the opportunity. Many disappointments and a few deaths occurred in both programs. Despite intense rivalry, with Soviets gaining more firsts than Americans, cooperation began in 1972. For space fans, this is a good read. Researchers would have appreciated an index, especially since none of the chapter headings indicate chapter contents. Summing Up: Recommended. All levels. F. N. Egerton emeritus, University of Wisconsin--Parkside

Longer on biography than on technology, this account of the first space farers will appeal to spaceflight buffs. And in a subject densely populated with memoirs by its principal figures, French and Burgess have generated new material from their own interviews with some of the pioneering astronauts and cosmonauts. In addition, the authors incorporate the recollections of nurse Dee O'Hara, who worked with the Mercury astronauts, and of American aviatrixes involved in a program, little known today, that might have but ultimately did not produce the first female in space. That accolade more famously went in 1963 to Valentina Tereshkova, whose upbringing, attraction to aeronautics, life-changing flight, and postflight career represent the pattern in which the authors present the dozen-plus individuals who structure their text. Tracking the firsts in space history, like Yuri Gagarin and Alan Shepard, followed by the seconds, such as Gherman Titov and Virgil Grissom, French and Burgess' history will engage the space-program audience. A sequel is slated for publication later in 2007, covering the years 1965-69. --Gilbert Taylor Copyright 2007 Booklist