Grade 5 Up-Though Cassutt claims that he's not offering a complete history of manned spaceflight, he certainly tells the human story. Half again the length of the previous edition (Macmillan, 1993), this revision contains not only updated, several-hundred to several-thousand-word biographies of the 380 astronauts and cosmonauts who have actually gone into space, but also the lives of hundreds more who came close (e.g., the X-15 pilots), or who are in line for upcoming flights. Moreover, the biographies are sandwiched between personal narratives, such as a selection of Jerry Linenger's 1997 "Letters to My Son from Mir," plus detailed chapters on astronaut training, the international and private astronaut programs, and other topics, plus 10 appendixes that include charts of every spaceflight and crew to mid-1998. Black-and-white portraits appear throughout, along with a full-color section of "NASA Mission Crew Patches." Comprehensive, international in scope, and refreshingly frank in its presentation of careers and events, this unique resource belongs in every reference collection and contains more than enough new material to supersede the older edition.
John Peters, New York Public Library
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
To coincide with the inauguration of the International Space Station program, this third edition of Cassutts biographical reference contains 80 new entries and also updates the biographies of every U.S. astronaut, Russian cosmonaut, and international astronaut who has flown or trained for space missions. Additionally, several sidebars provide astronauts firsthand accounts of training for and actually flying space missions. As valuable as the biographical updates are (e.g., several Apollo astronauts, including two of the 12 moon walkers, have died since the first edition in 1987), several appendixes enhance the utility of this reference even more with data on all manned spaceflights up to 1998, time in space logged by every space traveler, a detailed listing of the planned Space Station assembly sequence, and a full-color insert depicting NASA mission crew patches dating back to the Gemini program. Although a bit pricey, this update is recommended for subject collections.Thomas J. Frieling, Bainbridge Coll., GA
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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