'Man Into Space' book by Don Myrus

'Man Into Space' book by Don Myrus

This book, written by Don Myrus, was published shortly after Alan Shepard became the first American astronaut in 1961. The book focusses on the American Mercury programme and the seven astronauts that had been selected to take part. Yuri Gagarin had become the first human into space shortly before Shepard's flight, but due to the secretive nature of spaceflight adopted by the Soviet Union, Myrus decided to focus on the American programme.

Myrus was an American author and journalist, who had been assigned to study unidentified flying objects in the 1950s. In preparation for this book, he interviewed several astronauts. It is a good snapshot of the state of spaceflight after the first crewed American mission.

The early 1960s witnessed a huge increase in interest in space, as crewed missions lifted off from Earth for the first time. This new era of human exploration sparked an outpouring of factual and fictional books and magazines dedicated to the subject, looking to benefit from the excitement felt around the world.