Much has been written about the vast scientific importance of space exploration, but very little about the human side of being a m,ember of an astronaut crew. In this book, with the help of journalist Susan Okie, Sally Ride shares the personal experience of traveling into space. Astronauts live, sleep, eat, and work in conditions totally unlike anything we know here on Earth. Everything they do is affected by weightlessness. The simplest of daily routines, such as preparing meals or getting dressed, is a challenge to human ingenuity. Astronauts live and work as members of a team -- each a highly trained expert in a particular field. The cheerful enthusiasm with which they adapt to the special environment of space is testimony to their total commitment to their work. Written especially with a young audience in mind, To Space and Back answers questions frequently asked by space enthusiasts of all ages. It also reveals that the remarkable men and women who have chosen to pioneer the frontiers of space are first and foremost unique individuals -- like all of us. Grade 1 Up From the alarm clock ringing at 3:15 a.m. on launch day to getting used to gravity again after returning to Earth, Sally Ride takes readers on a trip in a space shuttle. This oversized book has plenty of clear, full-color photos that follow and supplement the text and bring to life the shuttle flight. Ride's zest for the adventure comes through clearly, making this a book that can be read aloud to young children, please an adult, or inspire anyone in between. This is much shorter and more accessible than previous accounts by astronauts, e.g., Gemini! (Macmillan, 1966; o.p.) by Virgil "Gus" Grissom or Flying to the Moon (Farrar, 1976) by Michael Collins. Just the right book to keep the dream alive while awaiting the next chance for a new American space adventure. Margaret L. Chatham, formerly at Smithtown Library, N.Y. Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. "...comes through clearly, making this a book that can be read aloud to young children, please an adult, or inspire anyone in between." -- -- School Library Journal, Starred Review "An engrossing account of a space journey, from blastoff to landing, gives intimate, you-are-there details..." -- -- Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, University of Chicago, Starred Review "This book is an important contribution to all that has been written about space travel..." -- -- The Chicago Tribune Susan Okie has known Sally Ride since they were students together at Westlake School. She remembers her as a "fleet-footed fourteen-year-old with a self-confident grin" who was her academic rival. They have remained close friends, even though their lives have taken them in different directions. Susan Okie also attended Swarthmore College and later went to Radcliffe, from which she graduated with a degree in biology. She received her M.D. from Harvard Medical School in 1978. She now works as a medical journalist for the Washington Post. "The book succeeds in helping us imagine the unimaginable..."