You Will Go to the Moon

by Mae Blacker Freeman

Originally published in 1959, prior to the first moon landing. A second edition was published in 1971, with new illustrations updated to reflect the Apollo program.The book is a children's story in the "Beginner Books" series, written using a restricted vocabulary of simple words for a readership age of six. The original 1959 illustrations show a lunar mission concept based on the Von Braun and Ley space exploration concepts of 1952 (Man Will Conquer Space Soon!), featuring wingéd three-stage rockets ferrying the passengers to a rotating-wheel space station, serving as a transfer station to the spider-like lunar surface shuttle.

Genres: Childrens, Picture Books, Space

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1959

Reviews

[Charles]

For thirty years I've been searching for a book I read in my small hometown library when I was about 7 or 8. I think I finally found it in this one. I remember the blue cover, though not the kid with the telescope on it. I remember, or seem to remember, the rocket pictures and space station pictures, although there's one moon illustration that I thought I remembered that is not here. Anyway, I reread it for nostalgia's sake and loved it. Certainly this is way outdated now but it's still a lovely little book that once ignited this child's imagination. A long time ago.

[Ed Garcia]

I must have borrowed this book a hundred times from the Aquidneck School library when I was in elementary school. I bought a copy on ebay a few years ago for nostalgia!

[Dianne Wolfer]

Totally loved revisiting this 'blast' from my childhood past :-)

[Luisa Knight]

They were a little optimistic about the average person traveling to the moon, haha, but the book and illustrations are still fun!

Ages: 4 - 8

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[Rose Ann]

I was given a copy of this book when I was 6 or 7. I loved it. I wonder whatever became of my copy. Lost it years and years ago.

[Charles]

The library of the elementary school that I went to had a tattered issue of this book and I read it over and over again, adding to the tattering. It fired my imagination to the point where I decided to study astronomy. Eager for more knowledge about other objects in the universe, I began reading the books on astronomy in the small library in my hometown.
The plot is simple, a boy is fascinated by the moon and he is told how he will go there. He is a passenger in a three-stage rocket that leaves Earth and travels to a giant space station. From there, he boards another ship that is the lunar lander. It takes three days to travel to the moon from the space station and some of the various entertainment activities are listed.
While this imaginary adventure does not match how the first lunar flights went, it is a logical rendition of how more routine trips to the moon will be done. A powerful rocket to a space station followed by a shuttle trip using a reusable ship that lands next to a dome-shaped permanent base.
This book fired my imagination and I am sure many others have experienced the same pulsations of desire to leave Earth and walk and work on the Moon. Someday it will be as routine as depicted in this book, one can only hope that it is soon.

[Quath]

A colorful depiction of space travel expectations in the 60s for young, early readers. This was written pre-moon landing, while the early Apollo flights were still in process. As another reviewer said, the author was overly optimistic about the future of space travel, but it's books like these that got kids like me interested in the topic. It's also fun to take a close look at the illustrations- some things they predicted have actually made it onto our modern space craft... and some definitely haven't.
I got lucky enough to inherit my dad's book and his Matt Mason toys (all in pristine condition), which pair nicely together and definitely got the creative juice going. I have no idea why no one makes the toys anymore- they should totally make a comeback.

[Lauren Gustafson]

I checked this book out from the Blauvelt Free Library so many times, they decided to give it to me. 🙂 A true favorite that sparked my interest in space & science. A few years ago, I actually brought it back to the library after four decades, along with my dad's ancient library card and inquired if there were any late fees on file.

Published 10 years before the moon landing. Trippy rockets, space stations and moon buggies. The illustrations rock.

Neckties in space. Who'd a thunk it?

[Kevin]

Wonderful book. The optimism of 1959 is so nice to see. It's right there in the title: you WILL go to the moon.

It's so sad that we now live in such a pessimistic time. It is hardly imaginable for a book like this to be written today. It's so sad that the only people trying to get us to become optimistic about space again are both dorks: Neil DeGrasse Tyson and Elon Musk.

[Marcia]

Great children's book published in 1959. It talks about going to the moon. The illustrations were of the 1950's so no one, at that time, knew what would have been later on. It is a trip down memory lane.

[Stephen Monroe Monroe]

One of my most cherished childhood books and important source of inspiration in my spiritual journey.

[Karl]

One of the earliest influences steering me toward being an aerospace engineer. Alas, out of print.

[Carol]

I read this over and over as a child

[Angela Mcentee]

I read this when I was a young child. I really thought it was called Someday you will go to the Moon. Loved this book

[Taylor]

Fascinating look at how some people imagined going to the moon would be like.

[Andrewcharles420]

Excellent children's book about the possibilities of near-Earth space travel! Fails the Bechdel test miserably (the boy's mom makes a brief appearance near the beginning of the book... otherwise, white dudes!). They did a great job with sciencey aspects of the book though--3 stage booster rockets, stabilizers on telescopes, a glossary in the back (The Science of Your MOON TRIP) explaining many differences between physics on Earth and in space/on the moon. Very forward looking (and surprisingly accurate) for a 1959 book. I wish we were so optimistic about space travel today! (c'mon SpaceX and Virgin Galactic! ...NASA, what happened??)

[Shane]

I've no clue what made me think of this book I read when I was in the 2nd grade, but I did. Anywho, I didn't go to the moon - yet (although I'd rather go to Paris (France) or Vienna (Italy), so the title got it wrong.


At any rate, I think this books' appeal would be more as historical curiosity than anything in terms of getting a glimpse into how some folks thought about space travel and such waybackwhen.

[Will2]

One of my favorite books as a kid. Yes, there's some horrid sexism in the book (only MEN go to space) but we just replaced some of the words when reading it to our child.

[Jonathan]

my 6yo read and loved it!!!

[Virginia Hume]

What amazes me most is the title. Not, you "might" go to the moon. Not "Wouldn't it be cool to go to the moon?"

No, it conveyed utter certainty - you WILL go to the moon.

Kind of sad now.

[ThePinkCarrot]

Cute story about a boy going to the moon. Very fantastical before man went to the moon, so not accurate technically. Interesting look into the imagination of our culture before something happened!

[Amy]

Written in 1959, this depicts the future the way they saw it back then. Interesting.