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Amazon.co.uk Review
Will we walk on distant planets? Terrestrial problems may have regained centre stage in our awareness, but the mythic and poetic possibilities unearthed by the space programs of the 20th century have changed us forever. Historian Wyn Wachhorst captures the essence of our birth as an interstellar species in The Dream of Spaceflight, a collection of five essays spanning nearly 500 years of scientific and technological achievement. The marriage of curiosity and hard work that drove heroes like Kepler, von Braun, and the Apollo astronauts (one of whom, Buzz Aldrin, wrote the foreword for this collection) to conceive, develop, and implement the knowledge and machinery of space travel comes alive in each word of Wachhorst's evocative prose. The subtitle of the second piece, "Nostalgia for a Bygone Future," speaks volumes for the thoughtfulness and creative energy the author devotes to his craft. Wachhorst knows why we cared so deeply about the space program during its heroic phase, and explains our curious ambivalence now that human involvement is restricted to mission control and orbital flights perceived as not much different from extended plane rides. The reader comes away from The Dream of Spaceflight freshly inspired--if a few senators read this, NASA will get all the funding it needs. --Rob Lightner
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This collection of truly lyrical essays discusses spaceflight as the embodiment of humanity's finest aspirations. . In the tradition of Loren Eiseley, Arthur Koestler, and Lewis Thomas, Wynn Wachhorst is a great rarity: an author of truly lyrical essays on science and technology. In his hands, the drive to explore space is a mirror of humanity's profoundest aspirations and noblest urges. Each of the book's four essays is a montage of images and reflections on the dream of spaceflight and its historical meaning. The opening essay, a survey of major figures from Johannes Kepler to Werner von Braun, sees in the rise of spaceflight a metaphor of modern history as a recurrent story of transformation and rebirth. The second essay recalls the romantic vision of the decades prior to Sputnik, and sets our own nostalgia for those days against that era's nostalgia for the future. The third essay loo ks at the moon landing as the signature event of our centurythe one that our descendants, a thousand years from now, will see as our greatest achievementand the fourth returns to the themes of transformation and rebirth, offering spaceflight as a cure for the withered capacity for wonder that afflicts the postmodern mind.
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14 reviews
44 of 45 people found the following review helpful
Review of The Dream of Spaceflight
4 May 2000
Format:Hardcover
The beautiful prose in Wyn Wachhorst's The Dream of Spaceflight : Essays on the Near Edge of Infinity, led me to a greater understanding of space exploration and invited me to meditate with the author on the deeper meanings waiting for us if we open ourselves to the mysteries of the universe. Reading this book reminded me of how I felt when I first read Chet Raymo's The Soul of the Night: that I was being taken on a journey to new places with a trustworthy guide. I love the way Wachhorst, like Raymo, looks at science through the lens of poetry. Throughout the essays in his book, whether he's writing about the history of spaceflight and the evolution of Western culture, philosophical concerns related to space exploration, or the workings of the human psyche, Wachhorst made me aware of how important it is not to lose the capacity for wonder and for the human race to keep dreaming of reaching the stars. As he focuses on what it means to explore other worlds, Wachhorst never loses sight of the inner, subjective meaning inherent in all our undertakings. The personal narrative that Wachhorst weaves through the book connects those inner and outer realities and celebrates a world that is infinite. These are essays I will return to often for their poetry, their intelligence, and their wisdom.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Wachhorst's magic realized
20 Sep 2000
Format:Hardcover
If every politician in Washington had read this book we would not only have saved the Pluto-Kuiper Express mission but might well be revitalizing our whole space effort in the direction of actual exploration. Wachhorst gets beyond the nuts and bolts and tired histories to the real meaning of spaceflight-what it feels like to dream the dream. My wife and I are avid readers, and this is simply the best non-fiction writing we have ever encountered.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
The Dream of Space Flight
8 Sep 2000
Format:Hardcover
I wish I could afford a full-page ad in the New York Times to tell the world about this book. It should be read not only by everyone committed to the exploration of space, but by anyone with the capacity to appreciate lyrical prose and profound insight. This is not just for space buffs, but for every person who has ever looked into the night sky and felt a visceral surge of wonder and a longing to know. I have to believe that if this book were made known to everyone in the English-speaking world, there would be literally millions who would feel it was one of the ten best books they had ever read. Pick it up and read just one page--any page in the book--and you'll be compelled to read the rest.
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