This is a British reprint and update of a 1953 book, first published in the U.S. It looks like this company re-printed many of the "First Books".
Bendick, Jeanne. The First Book of Space Travel (3rd edition). London: Edmund Ward. Ltd. (93 p.) 23 cm. Cloth, DJ.
ID. Primary. B&W drawings. UK version of 1963 U.S. 3rd edition. Text revised and rewritten to include more on military missiles, telemetry, planetary probes and launch vehicles. With many new illustrations of rockets and satellites it reuses some images from the first edition. See 1953 1st edition. ("The Famous First Books #34").
I blogged about the 1953 first edition on Feb 3, 2009
http://dreamsofspace.blogspot.com/2009/02/first-book-of-space-travel-1953.html
Some big ideas for a children's book, including hydroponics and hibernation through space.
I enjoy this last section about the "big ideas" we don't know about yet.
A quick one for today, Cosmonaut One (1965). This is one of many Russian pamphlets for children and the general public about Yuri Gagarin's first manned space flight. I like this one for its earlier date and painted illustrations.
From WORLDCAT:
Kosmonavt - 1. Michail Vasilʹevič Vodoṕjanov; Illustrations by E I Seleznev. Moskva : Malyš. 58 p. 21 cm.(1965) OCLC# 551136306
WESTERNIZED SPELLING:Written by Mikhail Vodopyanov. Illustrated by E. Seleznev.
I also like the picture of Konstantin Tsiolkovsky in the classroom (on the wall).
Some nice portraits of someone who died far too young.
