In Review

04 December 2008 04:10 BST

Space Race by Deborah Cadbury

Published by Harper Perennial, out now, paperback, 345 pages, £7.99.

In a nutshell….

Turgid. Contrived. Subjective. Informative. Scholarly.

What's it all about?

The book is a historical account of the race to space between the USSR and the US that culminated in Yuri Gagarin becoming the first man in space and Neil Armstrong's famous moon walk in 1969.

Set in the cold war context of international paranoia and ideological conflict, Cadbury's work can be seen as a dual biography of the two opposing sides' chief engineers, Soviet gulag survivor Sergei Korolev and reformed scientist Wernher von Braun, now working for Nasa after developing the V2 rockets for the Nazis. Despite being continents apart, both men were driven by the same ambition: to conquer space.

However, they have to overcome substantial difficulties, such as financial problems, political quagmires, internal backstabbing, and even the threat of death. Sacrifices are ultimately made as they strive to achieve their dreams.

Who's it by?

Born in 1955, Cadbury began her career with the BBC as a trainee researcher in 1978, then worked as a TV producer until 1982, winning several awards including an Emmy for science series Horizon. In 1983 she switched to writing and enjoyed similar success, with such highly-acclaimed books as Seven Wonders of the Industrial World, The Feminisation of Nature, The Dinosaur Hunters and The Lost King of France.

As an example…

(The USSR has successfully launched the world's first man-made satellite, Sputnik).

"Journalists led with an almost irrational howl of horror. If the Soviet Union could put a satellite in space, then it could deliver a nuclear warhead: American cities were in their sights. The US was now in a race for survival."

Page 168, chapter 11

Likelihood of becoming a Hollywood blockbuster

Due to its explicit anti-US stance, which at times is quite scathing, it is unlikely to be even considered by Hollywood, unless of course the book is completely reworked. Space Race has already been dramatised in a TV mini series in a collaborative effort between the BBC, Russia's Channel One TV, NDR in Germany and the National Geographic Channel.

What the others say

"The fact Space Race is a companion to a television series also works against it at times. Television series episodes occasionally require repetition to remind viewers of what they saw in a prior installment or to educate new viewers. In the written word, though, material stays in memory or it is easy to look back," Blog Critics.

"In the end this is a cautionary tale, a story of what happens when the dreams of humankind are hijacked by the darker aspirations of politics: the space shuttle still flies and the ICBMs still wait in their silos, and we are left to wonder at what price we soar to the heavens," Monsters and Critics.

So is it any good?

Cadbury's style lies in an uncomfortable position between a historical textbook and a historical novel, neither one nor the other, and consequently the text can often seem sentimentalised and lacking in objectivity. Descriptions used are often very heavy-handed, full of unnecessary emotive detail that is at best speculative, and as a result the book is not easy to read.

On the other hand the book is obviously well researched, and the history is incredibly fascinating, embroiling many other cold war events. Additionally the author has managed to condense over three decades of intricate history into a suitably sized book that does not intimidate potential readers. The new paperback edition also includes photographs, an index, and interviews with the author.

Unfortunately it is Cadbury's writing techniques that let the book down. Definitely one for either the rocket enthusiast or someone particularly interested in cold war history; the reader must however have stamina and patience to drag themselves through what is a badly-handled but exciting story.

6/10

Louise Champion