5.0 out of 5 stars
Stand By for Adventure, March 7, 2008
This review is from: On the Trail of Space Pirates (Paperback)
Tom Corbett Space Cadet, originally a radio show, in the mid 'fifties broke out into eight books. They were hardback books aimed at adolescents, and like The Hardy Boys, Tom Swift and Nancy Drew books, were probably written by a syndicate of various writers writing under the name Carey Rockwell. They show more consistency than do the Tom Swift books, however, so they may have all been by one author. The books were packed with illustrations by Louis Glanzman, and invited on the back cover: "Calling all boys and girls to Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and all points in outer space. You too can be a part of the group of daring adventurers from the Space Academy who travel to mysterious lands in outer space on dangerous and exciting missions. It's a simple as opening a book... if the book is Tom Corbett, Space Cadet."
These books must be out of copyright, judging from the many paperback editions now available. Given that the hardbacks, with their full color jackets, are collector's items, this is a way to read the stories without tracking down the hardbacks. This edition has a color space- themed cover, not too many errors, and is reasonably priced. The print is easy to read even though the original 212 page hardback is here formatted as a larger, 136 page paperback. In my view, this edition is superior to those in which the publishers didn't even try to design a space- themed cover, instead simply opting for a pattern.
The stories in this series are very adventurous, and the characters heroic. They center around three cadets in Space Academy, Tom Corbett, Astro, and Roger, and their adventures in the Solar Guard. Even the bad guys don't cuss, and the good guys good- naturedly call one another names like "Venusian monkey," always in keeping with the outer space theme. The hardbacks carry an ad for the Rick Brant Science- Adventure Stories, which managed to be just as exciting while remaining earthbound. All of which testifies to the great writing from the 'fifties in these books, which will delight young (and older) readers of today. To quote the back jacket of the hardbacks, "Don't miss these thrill- packed books."
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