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Into That Silent Sea: Trailblazers of the Space Era, 1961-1965 (Outward Odyssey: A People's History of Spaceflight) Paperback – Illustrated, September 1, 2009

by Francis French (Author), Colin Burgess (Author), Paul Haney (Foreword)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 106 ratings
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It was a time of bold new technology, historic moments, and international jousting on the final frontier. But it was also a time of human drama, of moments less public but no less dramatic in the lives of those who made the golden age of space flight happen. These are the moments and the lives that Into That Silent Sea captures, a book that tells the intimate stories of the men and women, American and Russian, who made the space race their own and gave the era its compelling character.

 

These pages chronicle a varied and riveting cavalcade of human stories, including a look at Yuri Gagarin’s harrowing childhood in war-ravaged Russia and Alan Shepard’s firm purchase on the American dream. It also examines the controversial career of cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space, and the remarkable struggle and ultimate disappointment of her American counterparts. It tries to uncover the truth behind the allegations that shadowed Gus Grissom and Scott Carpenter and then allows the reader to share the heart-stopping suspense of Alexei Leonov’s near-fatal first space walk. Through dozens of interviews and access to Russian and American official documents and family records, the authors bring to life the experiences that shaped the lives of the first astronauts and cosmonauts and forever changed their world and ours.
 
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Previous page
  1. Part of series
    Outward Odyssey: A People's History of Spaceflight
  2. Print length
    440 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Bison Books
  5. Publication date
    September 1, 2009
  6. Dimensions
    6.1 x 0.89 x 8.86 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    080322639X
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0803226395
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“[Into That Silent Sea] dispenses with distracting technical jargon and nationalistic jingoism to deliver ten superbly composed, thoughtfully balanced chapters about the astronauts and cosmonauts who flew Mercury and Vostok/Voskhod missions. . . . Avid readers will revel in the authors’ masterful compilation of these straight-forward, detailed mini-biographies.”—Air Power History

“Eminently readable, well-crafted. . . . The merits of this popular history rest in the elegant narrative and the authors’ thoughtful awareness of the space explorer genre.”—Air & Space Smithsonian Published On: 2007-10-01

“French and Burgess’s history will engage the space-program audience.”—Booklist

“A well-written account about the Americans and Russians who were the first to fly into space. . . . [The book] offers some excellent profiles of these individuals that are accessible to both newcomers to space history and well-read enthusiasts alike.”—Space Review Published On: 2007-06-27

"For space fans, this is a good read."—Choice

“Into That Silent Sea is an excellent reminder of just what Gagarin and other trailblazers did and how they became international celebrities in their own right. We seem to have forgotten just how new the frontier of space was. . . . Many people today seem to view space programs as an extravagance or with disinterest. For those who remain interested in those programs and have read the prior histories and memoirs, it never hurts to be reminded of just how pioneering the first steps were.”—Tim Gebhart, Blogcritics.org, Boston.com

“I enjoyed every page of this nearly 400-page tome. I was disappointed to finish it simply because I wanted to read more. . . . If you’re new to this field of reading I’d highly recommend starting with this book. The background on the spacefarers is very interesting.”—Today in Space History Blog

“The straightforward yet engrossing writing style of this history will interest readers from the junior-high level to adults. . . . What is especially compelling about this race into space story is the humanistic narrative, describing the individual cosmonauts and astronauts. . . . For younger readers, the description emphasizes the characteristics of determination, scholarship, loyalty, comraderie, dedication, and fitness—traits that are essential for astronaut applicants.”—Rita Hoots, Journal of College Science Teaching Published On: 2008-03-06

"Through dozens of interviews and access to Russian and American official documents and family records, the authors bring to life the experiences that shaped the lives of the first astronauts and cosmonauts and forever changed their worlds and ours."—Space Flight

"Into That Silent Sea explores the early Space Age from a very human-centric perspective."—Todd A. Mooring, Oral History Review

About the Author

Francis French is the director of education at the San Diego Air and Space Museum and the coauthor with Colin Burgess of In the Shadow of the Moon: A Challenging Journey to Tranquility, 1965–1969 (Nebraska 2007).

 

Colin Burgess is a former flight service director with Qantas Airlines and the author of many books on spaceflight, including Fallen Astronauts: Heroes Who Died Reaching for the Moon, available in a Bison Books edition.

 

A NASA public affairs officer from 1958 to 1969, Paul Haney was known widely as NASA’s “voice of mission control.”

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bison Books; Illustrated edition (September 1, 2009)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 440 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 080322639X
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0803226395
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.3 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.1 x 0.89 x 8.86 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 106 ratings

About the author

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Francis French

Francis French

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Francis French has international experience in relating science, engineering, music, astronomy, art, and wildlife to general audiences through classes, workshops, public speaking, television and documentary productions. He is the author of numerous bestselling history books, and an international keynote speaker at conferences. More information at www.francisfrench.com .

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
106 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Thomas Erickson
5.0 out of 5 stars Another great Astronaut book Francis French and Colin Burgess
Reviewed in the United States on August 19, 2010
Verified Purchase
I've read almost all the astronaut books. Just read In The Shadow of the Moon by Francis French. 5 star... what a great writer. That book made me buy Into That Silent Sea also by Francis French and Colin Burgess.

The authors tell that they are going to tell about the makings of the men and women in that period and try as best as they can for complete accuracy. I appreciate that.

I learned many stories and tidbits about the astronauts from themselves and others (mothers, nurses (Dee O' Hara) and fellow workers/astronauts .The writing style is superb and reads like the smell and taste of a superb quality wine. Great pictures too.

Both the astronauts and the cosmonauts are presented as well as for me an unknown wannabe group of female "astronauts" that got the massive Lovelace medical testing but because of NASA's requirement of being a jet test pilot (there were no women jet test pilots back then) and having a college engineering degree or equivalent were never selected.

A number of great selections of the Soviet first man in space Gagarin, Cosmonaut Cherman Titov, the duel launches of Cosmonaut Nikolayev and Popovich are superbly written. We learn about their childhoods and growing up and a little about their military carriers.The first female in space Soviet Cosmonaut Valentina Tershkova and Valery Bykovsky are mentioned too. My favorite Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov has a chapter too. Much is learned about their childhoods and the hard life they had to endure. A superb writing part on some of the major soviets to enter space in this period.

There are great chapters on Alan Shepard, Gus Grissom ( explaining in detail he did not blow the hatch on Liberty Bell),John Glenn and his flight with what was thought to have a damaged heat shield, Scott Carpenter ( learned more about the problems he had on his Mercury flight and why it was not totally his fault). I really appreciated the part about Scott Carpenter and his deep sea lab and saturation diving experiences as well as his horse riding in Australia while stationed on a communication outpost for NASA ( I ride horses and was a certified rescue diver).Scott Carpenter saves the life of a "free diver" while Carpenter and Glenn are recreational diving but John Glenn gets the credit in the papers as he is the nation's super hero spaceman. There is a chapter about the 2 Wally's (Wally Schirra and the female great pilot Wally Funk who wanted to be an astronaut. Gordon Cooper has a chapter too.Deke Donald Slayton is mentioned too.

This is a great book with many stories and tidbits you may have not heard about. Also I do believe the authors did try for as much accuracy as possible. Just look at the reviews...almost everyone gave 5 stars. Me too....5 stars plus...a great book. This to me should be a must read matched set In The Shadow of the Moon and Into That Silent Sea. Both top notch and the very best!
14 people found this helpful
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Angela Joyce
5.0 out of 5 stars Utterly riveting.
Reviewed in the United States on August 26, 2016
Verified Purchase
I hadn't thought about space in a long time. After an initial childhood enthusiasm for the the nine planets, my main impressions of space travel were based on the sadness I felt, at age 10, writing letters of condolence to the McAuliffe family with my fifth grade class. I also remember watching the 90s TV show, Northern Exposure, and hearing the character Maurice throw around names like Shepard, Cooper, and Grissom. This didn't make them real people for me, and didn't particularly spark my interest.

This book changed all that, with a vengeance! In the biographical accounts of these astronauts and cosmonauts, I found myself confronted with characters I simply couldn't dismiss-- real people with fascinating life stories (especially the cosmonauts), who took unthinkable risks to make unprecedented discoveries. I got a strong sense of what each person was about, what drove him or her, and I grew to feel quite an affection for four in particular (Titov, Popovich, Carpenter, and Wally Funk. Oh, Wally Funk! She's marvelous).

I was drawn in by the set-up of the chapters, which alternate smoothly between the American astronauts and Soviet cosmonauts. As stated, the cosmonauts held slightly more fascination for me (with the exception of Funk), but there is not a dull page in the book. Suspense is masterfully built up. At times I began to experience the more dangerous moments a little too vividly, and had to remember to breathe!

Non-fiction books rarely affect me so. Perhaps this is due to the approachable, warm, no-nonsense writing by Francis French and Colin Burgess. It is a collaboration, yet speaks with one consistent voice.

I'm sure this book is great for people who already have a love for the history of space travel. Even more, though, I'd recommend it for readers like me: those who need to be reminded how interested they once were and, when it comes down to it, still are.
5 people found this helpful
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Nicholas D. Angelica
5.0 out of 5 stars fighter jocks just like our guys were
Reviewed in the United States on January 13, 2016
Verified Purchase
So I'll skip the part about the French/Burgess combo because everyone probably knows by now that anything these guys put their name on, we should all be reading. To go back to the review I wrote for 'In the Shadow of the Moon,' I mentioned that sometimes when reading a bunch of books on any particular topic, a certain amount of repetition is expected... About 90% of this book was new to me. Granted, this is only the 33rd book I've read on human spaceflight so obviously there is plenty of info I've yet to cover.

Some highlights for me:
-the Soviet program chapters. I actually started caring about these guys even more than I had before. Reading about their early lives, learning where exactly they came from and how they came up, drawing similarities and differences between them and our earliest astronauts... And especially finding out at the end of the day, most of them were just fly by the seat of their pants, jet fuel in their veins, fighter jocks just like our guys were.

-the Lovelace testing for women. Now this I had heard of, but I definitely did not know how deep it went or who the big names in the movement were. Incredibly interesting.

-early Soviet aerospace medicine vs. NASA flight surgeons. If Deke Slayton were born in Ukraine instead of Wisconsin, studied/flew at Zhukovsky instead of Edwards, became a cosmonaut instead of an astronaut, but still had that same atrial fibrillation, he would have probably been cleared to fly Vostok, Voshkod, or Soyuz.

So that's just a few. But of course, for those of you who have not read this book on the early American and Soviet programs, definitely pick it up!
6 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Stickymike
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book - for those that want to know what ...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 12, 2018
Verified Purchase
Excellent book - for those that want to know what happened in the early days of manned spaceflight, this is well worth a read.!!
3 people found this helpful
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Sly
5.0 out of 5 stars Bought this for my husband who thoroughly enjoyed it and wouldn't stop recounting bits of it
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 13, 2016
Verified Purchase
Bought this for my husband who thoroughly enjoyed it and wouldn't stop recounting bits of it. Some incredible stories that would make the film Apollo 13 look positively tame.
2 people found this helpful
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