Space Race The Story of Space Exploration

Space Race – AD sent for review and giveaway

I often reflect on the differences between my own childhood and my son’s and the biggest change has to be technology and the availability of information at the touch of a button.  I can remember learning about space as a child and it was grainy images on an old TV and the books we had really were quite adult in the way they were written.  Time really has moved on, and in the Space Race book published by Carlton Books recently, children can not only read about the story of space exploration, a free app brings the story to life in front of their eyes.

Space Race The Story of Space Exploration

Space Race The Story of Space Exploration is a 96 page hardback book aimed at children aged 8 years and over.  It’s packed full of photographs and illustrations as well as clear snippets of information that are easy for children to understand.

The chapters take us through the race for rockets, how and when humans went into space, looks at the moon as well as space shuttles and the space station that my son knows about.  The book also covers the various planet probes and looks ahead at future plans for the Space Race.  It’s a fascinating book, which we’ve both enjoyed reading together.

We’ve seen V-2 Missiles in various museums we’ve visited and Space Race The Story of Space Exploration gives us a fact file as well as information on why and how they were built as well as who designed them.

The race to get men into space was happening before I was born, in fact we learned that Vostok 1 was ready to take of on my birthday, but seven years before I arrived on the scene!

Space Race The Story of Space Exploration

We learned about the first cosmonauts and that Valentina Tereshkova was the first woman in space in 1963.  It’s hard to contemplate that it took a further nineteen years before the next female astronaut would visit space.  Being able to walk in space still fascinates me now, and Space Race The Story of Space Exploration discusses the dangers the astronauts faced when this was first tried.

Space Race The Story of Space Exploration

In July this year it will be fifty years since the Apollo 11 mission to the moon.  Apparently I watched the events unfold with my parents on TV, but I was only a year old so I clearly have no recollection.  I do however have many memories of the Space Shuttle and the various space missions it undertook.

Space Race The Story of Space Exploration

The book also explores what it’s like to live in space, how and what astronauts eat and how they actually sleep. Did you know that astronauts often attach their sleeping bags to a wall and then climb in to try to get to sleep.  I can’t imagine that it’s particularly comfortable.

Probes and telescopes have been a fascinating way for us all to learn more about our solar system.  Over the years it’s been so interesting to watch images bounced back to earth of planets like Venus and Mercury.

Space Race The Story of Space Exploration

I wonder if we will see regular commercial space travel in my lifetime?  It seems too much like something out on a B movie for me, but I’m sure it will happen eventually. Space Race The Story of Space Exploration talk about this as well as the Parker Solar Probe which was launched last year and will get closer to the sun than any probe before it.  It will take seven years to reach the sun, so something for us all to watch out for in the future.

It’s a really interesting read, and one that we’ve both enjoyed and learned from.  But Space Race The Story of Space Exploration isn’t just your standard non fiction reference book.  Download the free Space Race AR app which is available on both Google Play Store and App Store for augmented reality fun at intervals throughout the book.

If you find a page which says ‘replay history here’ you hold your device over the book and videos will start to play or 3D models come to life.

It brings a whole new element to the book and really brings Space Race to life.  My son loves to watch the old films.  It’s been a big hit here.

You can order Space Race directly from the Carlton Books website.

disclosure:  we were sent the item mentioned in exchange for an honest review.


I have teamed up with Carlton Books to offer one lucky reader the chance to win Space Race The Story of Space Exploration worth £12.99.  Complete the gleam form below for your chance to win.  Good luck!

Terms and conditions:

(Please note that all entries will be checked against comments for validation).

Only the first step of this form is mandatory, all other steps are optional. Only one entry per person is allowed.

This giveaway is for UK residents only.

Once a winner is randomly picked, I will check if the winner has done what was requested and I will contact them, if they do not reply within one week, the prize will be allocated to another person.  The winner’s details will be sent to Carlton Books, in order that they can arrange delivery.  Please allow 28 days for delivery.

The giveaway will close on 10th April 2019 at midnight.

Don’t forget to visit my Giveaways page for more great prizes on offer!

Space Race book worth £12.99

95 thoughts on “Space Race – AD sent for review and giveaway

  1. I would like to visit Venus, women are supposedly from Venus so it would technically be my home

  2. If you could visit any planet in the solar system which would you choose and why?
    Pluto, to see why it has been downgraded from a planet

  3. Proxima Centauri I like to think there are already “humans” living there although I suppose they will be ET’s to us?

  4. Jupiter as its always seemed really mysterious and mystical, also its so huge surely there is some sort of life there! Xx

  5. I would love to visit Saturn. It’s got the lot: interesting moons and then of course the famous rings. It would be amazing to see the rings up close. They are made up of billions of pieces of rock.

  6. The MOON – Want to see if it’s true what my parents told me – aiken Drum lives there

  7. I’d like to visit the moon, my Mum always told me it was made of cheese……… and I love cheese!

  8. Pluto, so that I could try to prove it was a planet as it was when I was in school and I feel bad that it’s had that status taken away from it

  9. I’d like to visit Mars because it has the biggest mountain in the solar system the Olympus muns (I thank my year 2 class for teaching me this!)

  10. I would love to go to the moon because it’s the closest and so won’t take too long but also I want to know if there’s anything living on the dark side

  11. I would go to the asteroid belt and “island hop” between them until I found one that was just perfect for me

  12. It would have to be Mars…my budding 7 year old astrophysicist has taught me that many facts about it, it feels like a second home!!

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