Wow. I learned so much from this quick, fast-paced read about the race to space and the cold war. Brief but comprehensive overview of how Nazi Germany, Russia, and the U.S. (and two individuals in particular) proved to be critical in the rise of rockets, space exploration, and cold war relations. So much information was classified and/or camouflaged from the public in the late 1960s and as we piece this history puzzle together now we see such a different picture emerge. Truly interesting for even those readers who are not history or space enthusiasts. Told in an exciting and page-turning manner sure to entice most middle schoolers and up.

This had a lot of information in it about the space race that I hadn’t known before. I’ve never been super intrigued by the space race anyway, but this kept me riveted. So many secrets!

The story of Russia and Germany and how each country contributed knowledge of their want to use rockets as a means of getting into space. This book especially tells the history of Von Braun and his early dealings with Hitler and the Nazi party. I have always heard his name in accordance with the history of NASA but I never heard the story about his move to escape the Nazi era and his acceptance into helping the U.S. space program and NASA. Interesting how little bits of history were hidden about the men behind the space program. This book also shows how animals were used as the first living things put into space and how women were 'shielded" from letting it be known that they also were part in helping attain the achievement of what we have achieved through the space program. Very good read that brings out all the past history that has shaped the space program. Good or bad it happened and benefits were achieved. Especially liked the story of Von Braun, good or evil, we will never truly know. His intelligence was used not for destruction but for the love of conquering space travel as we know it today.