82 Books Like Peek-a-Flap Space

Influenced by the Apollo era, “I applied to be an astronaut four times and was rejected three times before I was accepted. So, it’s about following your dream and not giving up.” This is from the son of a New York City fireman, where work ethic, never giving up, and lots of humor frame Mike’s achievement to becoming an astronaut (and even a guest on The Big Bang Theory). I’ve known Mass since 2007 and those ingrained qualities make for an inspirational narrative. Perhaps the most poignant: trying to avoid tearing up during his first EVA spacewalk on the Hubble Space Telescope when he experienced seeing the wonder of our blue-dot, water-world Earth from space.  

This was the book that made me a pilot. I often tell people that the movie was about the astronauts, whereas the book is about the pilots who were astronauts.

In this book, Wolfe captures the essence of what it is to be a Pilot better than any other book I have ever read. I first read this when I was in my teens. Before every check ride, I revisited selected passages to get in the right frame of mind to go out and crush my flight.

This is the book that inspired, encouraged, and drove me. I have read and re-read it more times than I can remember, and I will undoubtedly continue to read it far into the future.

I went to see Mary Roach in person at an event held in the town where I live, and the interview was nothing short of hilarious. Roach’s curiosity and zest for life are infectious, and her storytelling style made me feel like I was the one (or, often, wishing I was the one) in the wacky situations she seems to find herself.

For me, her book is no different; it covers a lot of the wild, captivating stories involved with space travel. It is just such a fun book about a fun topic.

“Weightlessness is like a new toy you get to unwrap every day, again and again — and it’s a great reminder, too, that you need to savor the small stuff, not just sweat it.” One of many lessons learned offered by the Canadian astronaut (yes, the one who sang a creative version of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity”) and flew on both the American Shuttle and Russian Soyuz. Like other next-generation astronauts influenced by the Apollo era, Chris reveals a non-jargon view about training and spaceflight with international crews. As Commander of the International Space Station during Expedition 34/35, he writes, “… don’t assume you know everything, and try to be ready for anything” is wisdom that can be related to here on Earth and up there in space.” 

The autobiography of John Young is almost a history of NASA itself since he began his career there in 1962 and retired from it in 2004. Young was the only astronaut to fly two Gemini missions, two Apollo missions, and two Space Shuttle missions. His book covers all of the various challenges the U.S. space agency faced during that period, and he also touches on the future of spaceflight up until 2012, when the book was published.

I have read many books about the Apollo astronauts and their journeys to the Moon, but this very readable book is the only one that took me along on the greatest human adventure in space.

Chaikin also left me knowing each one of these astronauts better than I did when I started.

Stanley Kubrick’s 2001, Space Odyssey is considered the most artful science fiction film about space exploration ever made. Premiered in early 1968, it instills levels of awe, wonder, and mystery. “While realism was important in 2001”, the writer-artist Michael Benson writes, “it was outranked by an ongoing quest for visual purity—for images powerful enough to elide verbal explanation and tell their own stories.” With meticulous research, interviews, and quality access to both the Kubrick archives and the files of Arthur C. Clark – the science fiction writer whose book 2001 inspired the film, Benson unveils the behind-the-scenes odyssey of creating this timeless cinematic masterpiece. I might add that my photographic approach has been influenced by the film’s visually-driven narrative as much as how Kubrick technically created it.

As a supporter of private space exploration, I liked this novel and particularly enjoyed the atmosphere reminiscent of Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne. A point I liked above all is how the characters succeed in getting along, notwithstanding the stress and the interpersonal problems arising well before the launch.

As often happens, the reality is now going well beyond literature: here, the private mission is made on a meager budget, endangering the astronauts, while in the real world, company spacecraft are even more advanced than those of the space agencies.

While Jumbo Book of Amazing Mazes lacks the high-end production values of my other recommendations, it does offer a whopping 175 colourful illustrated mazes, enough (probably) to last the whole summer holidays! The mazes are varied, with many of them incorporating other puzzle techniques, so you’ll find code-word mazes, quiz mazes, number-logic mazes, and riddle mazes in the mix, this is something I like a lot, and one of the reasons it made my list. This book is great value for money and better than many, if not most, of the similarly priced alternatives (many of which only include black and white mazes, something to be aware of).

This book marked my childhood in the '80s (there is a modern version but the original is the one), being one of the main reasons I do what I do. This is the story of an astronaut that lands on a planet far far away, after running out of fuel. Somehow everyone on earth can hear his loneliness and tries to help. It is a beautiful story about self-understanding and helping others, that mixes illustrations and photographs, allowing children's imaginations to flow: the little planet is represented by an orange photo and the rocket is just a regular bread piece, which as a kid blew my mind.