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A Ball, a Dog, and a Monkey: 1957 - The Space Race Begins
A Ball, a Dog, and a Monkey tells the remarkable story of America's first efforts to succeed in space, a time of exploding rockets, national space mania, Florida boomtowns, and interservice rivalries so fierce that President Dwight Eisenhower had to referee them. When the Soviet Union launched the first orbital satellite, Sputnik I, Americans panicked. The Soviets had nuclear weapons, the Cold War was underway, and now the USSR had taken the lead in the space race. Members of Congress and the press called for an all-out effort to launch a satellite into orbit. With dire warnings about national security in the news almost every day, the armed services saw space as the new military frontier. But President Eisenhower insisted that the space effort, which relied on military technology, be supervised by civilians so that the space race would be peaceful. The Navy's Vanguard program flopped, and the Army, led by ex-Nazi rocket scientist Wernher von Braun and a martinet general named J. Bruce Medaris (whom Eisenhower disliked), took over. Meanwhile, the Soviets put a dog inside the next Sputnik, and Americans grew more worried as the first animal in space whirled around the Earth. Throughout 1958 America went space crazy. UFO sightings spiked. Boys from Brooklyn to Burbank shot model rockets into the air. Space-themed beauty pageants became a national phenomenon. The news media flocked to the launchpads on the swampy Florida coast, and reporters reinvented themselves as space correspondents. And finally the Army's rocket program succeeded. Determined not to be outdone by the Russians, America's space scientists launched the first primate into space, a small monkey they nicknamed Old Reliable for his calm demeanor. And then at Christmastime, Eisenhower authorized the launch of a secret satellite with a surprise aboard. A Ball, a Dog, and a Monkey memorably recalls the infancy of the space race, a time when new technologies brought ominous danger but also gave us the ability to realize our dreams and reach for the stars.
320 pages, Hardcover
Published September 18, 2007
9 people are currently reading
185 people want to read
About the author
Michael D'Antonio
37 books93 followersA Pulitzer Prize winning writer of books, articles, and original stories for film, Michael D’Antonio has published more than a dozen books, including Never Enough, a 2015 biography of presidential candidate and billionaire businessman Donald Trump. Described variously as “luminous,” “captivating,” “momentous” and “meticulous” Michael’s work is renowned for its clarity, balance, and thoroughness.
His works a have been noted as “best books of the year” or “editors’ picks” by The New York Times, The Christian Science Monitor, Businessweek, The Chicago Tribune and Publisher’s Weekly. He has appeared on Sixty Minutes, Today, Good Morning, The Morning Show, America, Larry King Live, Morning Edition, All Things Considered, Diane Rehm, Coast-to-Coast, and many other programs.
Before becoming a fulltime author, Michael worked as a journalist in New York, Washington, and Maine. He has written for Esquire, The New York Times Magazine, The Times of London Magazine, Discover, Sports Illustrated, The Los Angeles Times Magazine and many others. He has received numerous awards including the 1984 Pulitzer Prize, shared with a team at Newsday that explored the medical, legal, and ethical issues surrounding the Baby Jane Doe case.
In 2016, Michael has became a regular contributor for CNN, both on-air and on their website. His pieces can be read here: http://www.cnn.com/profiles/michael-d...
D’Antonio has been the recipient of the Alicia Patterson Fellowship, the First Amendment Award, and the Humanitas Award for his Showtime film, Crown Heights. Born and raised in New Hampshire, Michael now lives on Long Island with his wife, Toni Raiten-D’Antonio who is a psychotherapist, professor, and author of three acclaimed books.
His works a have been noted as “best books of the year” or “editors’ picks” by The New York Times, The Christian Science Monitor, Businessweek, The Chicago Tribune and Publisher’s Weekly. He has appeared on Sixty Minutes, Today, Good Morning, The Morning Show, America, Larry King Live, Morning Edition, All Things Considered, Diane Rehm, Coast-to-Coast, and many other programs.
Before becoming a fulltime author, Michael worked as a journalist in New York, Washington, and Maine. He has written for Esquire, The New York Times Magazine, The Times of London Magazine, Discover, Sports Illustrated, The Los Angeles Times Magazine and many others. He has received numerous awards including the 1984 Pulitzer Prize, shared with a team at Newsday that explored the medical, legal, and ethical issues surrounding the Baby Jane Doe case.
In 2016, Michael has became a regular contributor for CNN, both on-air and on their website. His pieces can be read here: http://www.cnn.com/profiles/michael-d...
D’Antonio has been the recipient of the Alicia Patterson Fellowship, the First Amendment Award, and the Humanitas Award for his Showtime film, Crown Heights. Born and raised in New Hampshire, Michael now lives on Long Island with his wife, Toni Raiten-D’Antonio who is a psychotherapist, professor, and author of three acclaimed books.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
February 19, 2022
I do love reading/listening to space books from time to time and this one didn't disappoint. Very interesting to listen to
February 6, 2011
A fascinating history of the first two years of the space race, 1957 and 1958. As the time period covered implies, Michael D'Antonio's purpose is strictly limited to the early Soviet and U.S. efforts to hurl objects into space, from the first Sputnik to the U.S. launch of an entire Atlas missile carrying a recording of President Eisenhower reading a message of peace, a launch carried out not really to broadcast a message of peace, but to put the Soviets in their place by placing the heaviest object yet into orbit. I remember a lot of this stuff . . . I was 11 and 12 when all this happened, and was out in the backyard every night looking for Sputnik and the follow-on American and Soviet satellites, glued to the TV and radio whenever anything space-related came on, following every word of Werner von Braun whenever he appeared on the Disney show (which was often). Exciting times. Reading this history as an adult, I'm now a bit more educated about the then-mysterious Russian program and the interservice rivalries that accompanied the American effort. Most of all, I'm terribly terribly impressed with the wisdom and leadership of Dwight D. Eisenhower, who kept his perspective about the early Soviet victories and managed to organize an effective space program in spite of squabbles between the Navy, the Army, and the Air Force, and the machinations of the military-industrial complex. And Laika . . . what a sad end for such a brave dog . . . I'm happy someone finally wrote a book giving Laika the attention she deserves.
July 29, 2009
I enjoyed D'Antonio's writing style and had to respect the extensive research that he put into the book. Also, I found the idea of reporting on a period of time as opposed to a particular person or event very interesting. With all of the hoopla surrounding the anniversary of the moon landing, I enjoyed getting a chance to learn about the less-celebrated milestones on the journey to that achievement.
The book put me in mind of seeing slides of someone's vacation. A scene comes up, and the person offers a little story about what we're seeing and gives what background he has on the people in the photo. Over time, a few people start to show up repeatedly, and we build up a sense of them, but it remains limited by the snapshots in which they appear. By the end, we have a fairly strong overview of the events described, but at any particular moment we have only a sliver of the picture. At the end of the book, the author offers an epilogue in the style of "based on a true story" movies where a bit of text at the end tells us what the main characters went on to do with their lives.
Toward the end of the book, the editorial rigor begins to slide; typos and digressions begin to multiply, but this only occurs in the last twenty pages or so.
Finally, militant, PETA-type animal lovers should NOT read this book. It will just make you angry.
The book put me in mind of seeing slides of someone's vacation. A scene comes up, and the person offers a little story about what we're seeing and gives what background he has on the people in the photo. Over time, a few people start to show up repeatedly, and we build up a sense of them, but it remains limited by the snapshots in which they appear. By the end, we have a fairly strong overview of the events described, but at any particular moment we have only a sliver of the picture. At the end of the book, the author offers an epilogue in the style of "based on a true story" movies where a bit of text at the end tells us what the main characters went on to do with their lives.
Toward the end of the book, the editorial rigor begins to slide; typos and digressions begin to multiply, but this only occurs in the last twenty pages or so.
Finally, militant, PETA-type animal lovers should NOT read this book. It will just make you angry.
June 26, 2011
This book covers from Sputnik through a few years later. An anecdote laden book with lots of memories from people who were there. I learned some things I didn't know, and got caught up in the stories. A good book, but probably only for someone who's interesting in the topic.
April 21, 2023
The effect of Sputnik on the United States was electrifying. I was about 10 at the time. As it happened, we were on the 2nd and last year of our sojourn in Germany where my father was researching at the University of Heidelberg. The effect there was minimal, but from what I’ve read since, everyone in the U.S. was horrified at the pity shown to the United States, now clearly in a distant 2nd place. There is no doubt it had a substantial impact on the presidential election in 1960 along with the non-existent missile gap.
The author begins with Soviet initiatives, but most of the book, which covers but a year up through 1958, is devoted to American political in-fighting and initiatives. It was former Nazi rocket scientists like Werner Von Braun(1) and his German colleagues who created their own little enclave near Huntsville, Alabama, that gave the U.S. an edge.
Aside from the interesting technical details, D’Antonio provides a broad picture of life in the fifties and especially the cultural changes that were wrought by enormous sums of money poured into places like Cape Canaveral and Huntsville; places that had been mere backwaters exploded into rapidly expanding subdivisions with concomitant increases in real estate values.
Sputnik had enormous policy and cultural implications and changes. Soon, in the guise of protecting America from the Red Menace, every group imaginable from the NEA and National Science Foundation, to politicians who wanted more money for their districts, to weapons manufacturers, to the Air Force and Army at loggerheads on which service was to control missiles, was clamoring for huge increases in the federal budget for their projects. Articles in the press, naively drawing on PR the Soviets were putting out, talked about Russian nuclear trains, ships, airplanes and satellites. So, not only was there a missile gap (ironically thanks to the U-2 Eisenhower knew this was a chimera)(2), but a science gap, and education gap, a you-name-it-gap, and anyone who suggested otherwise had to be a Commie. People who formerly had been unalterably opposed to federal support for local education, now changed their tune and bellied up to the trough. Eisenhower was in a touch position. He warned of the military-industrial symbiosis, but the political pressure from both sides was just too much.
In the meantime, rocket launches at Cape Canaveral were beset with all sorts of failures, some spectacularly public, others seemingly mundane. In one case, because some special paper had been loaded backwards into the printer, the results appeared to be the opposite of what was good, and the missile was destroyed fearing it would go off course or explode uncontrollably.
PR became crucial in the battle between the Army, Air Force and later NASA for control of rocketry. Eisenhower was anxious to have civilian control of space, while the military and people like Edward Teller were anxious to dominate the Russians using military control of space. The perception was the Russians were ahead and they clearly had more powerful rockets, but that dominance vanished quickly. This was the time of Public Relations. Edward Bernays had revolutionized how we view control of consent, and his book Crystallizing Public Opinion and Engineering Of Consent became bibles of the industry. I will have to read them.
It’s astonishing today to see what they got away with in the fifties in the name of science. Project Argos, for example, exploded low-yield high altitude nuclear weapons in space to determine the effect of radiation on all sorts of things, but the main objective was to study the Christofilos Effect hoping that it would be possible to protect against a Soviet nuclear attack by exploding nuclear bombs high over the Pacific. The idea was to create a barrier of electrons that would fry the electronics of Soviet warheads, and possibly also to blind Soviet radar to a U.S. counter-attack. I suppose one could argue the tests were a great success because we learned it wouldn't work. It was all terribly secret, of course.
A truly fascinating look into the culture and history of the U.S., and to some extent Soviet, space race.
(1) Hunt, Linda. Secret Agenda: The United States Government, Nazi Scientists, and Project Paperclip, 1945 to 1990. St Martins Press, 1991. Secret Agenda: The United States Government, Nazi Scientists, and Project Paperclip, 1945 to 1990
(2) Beschloss, M. (2016). Mayday: Eisenhower, Khrushchev, and the U-2 affair. Open Road Media.
Jacobsen, Annie. Operation Paperclip: The Secret Intelligence Program that Brought Nazi Scientists to America. Little, Brown, 2014. Mayday: Eisenhower, Khrushchev, and the U-2 Affair
The author begins with Soviet initiatives, but most of the book, which covers but a year up through 1958, is devoted to American political in-fighting and initiatives. It was former Nazi rocket scientists like Werner Von Braun(1) and his German colleagues who created their own little enclave near Huntsville, Alabama, that gave the U.S. an edge.
Aside from the interesting technical details, D’Antonio provides a broad picture of life in the fifties and especially the cultural changes that were wrought by enormous sums of money poured into places like Cape Canaveral and Huntsville; places that had been mere backwaters exploded into rapidly expanding subdivisions with concomitant increases in real estate values.
Sputnik had enormous policy and cultural implications and changes. Soon, in the guise of protecting America from the Red Menace, every group imaginable from the NEA and National Science Foundation, to politicians who wanted more money for their districts, to weapons manufacturers, to the Air Force and Army at loggerheads on which service was to control missiles, was clamoring for huge increases in the federal budget for their projects. Articles in the press, naively drawing on PR the Soviets were putting out, talked about Russian nuclear trains, ships, airplanes and satellites. So, not only was there a missile gap (ironically thanks to the U-2 Eisenhower knew this was a chimera)(2), but a science gap, and education gap, a you-name-it-gap, and anyone who suggested otherwise had to be a Commie. People who formerly had been unalterably opposed to federal support for local education, now changed their tune and bellied up to the trough. Eisenhower was in a touch position. He warned of the military-industrial symbiosis, but the political pressure from both sides was just too much.
In the meantime, rocket launches at Cape Canaveral were beset with all sorts of failures, some spectacularly public, others seemingly mundane. In one case, because some special paper had been loaded backwards into the printer, the results appeared to be the opposite of what was good, and the missile was destroyed fearing it would go off course or explode uncontrollably.
PR became crucial in the battle between the Army, Air Force and later NASA for control of rocketry. Eisenhower was anxious to have civilian control of space, while the military and people like Edward Teller were anxious to dominate the Russians using military control of space. The perception was the Russians were ahead and they clearly had more powerful rockets, but that dominance vanished quickly. This was the time of Public Relations. Edward Bernays had revolutionized how we view control of consent, and his book Crystallizing Public Opinion and Engineering Of Consent became bibles of the industry. I will have to read them.
It’s astonishing today to see what they got away with in the fifties in the name of science. Project Argos, for example, exploded low-yield high altitude nuclear weapons in space to determine the effect of radiation on all sorts of things, but the main objective was to study the Christofilos Effect hoping that it would be possible to protect against a Soviet nuclear attack by exploding nuclear bombs high over the Pacific. The idea was to create a barrier of electrons that would fry the electronics of Soviet warheads, and possibly also to blind Soviet radar to a U.S. counter-attack. I suppose one could argue the tests were a great success because we learned it wouldn't work. It was all terribly secret, of course.
A truly fascinating look into the culture and history of the U.S., and to some extent Soviet, space race.
(1) Hunt, Linda. Secret Agenda: The United States Government, Nazi Scientists, and Project Paperclip, 1945 to 1990. St Martins Press, 1991. Secret Agenda: The United States Government, Nazi Scientists, and Project Paperclip, 1945 to 1990
(2) Beschloss, M. (2016). Mayday: Eisenhower, Khrushchev, and the U-2 affair. Open Road Media.
Jacobsen, Annie. Operation Paperclip: The Secret Intelligence Program that Brought Nazi Scientists to America. Little, Brown, 2014. Mayday: Eisenhower, Khrushchev, and the U-2 Affair
June 24, 2017
I needed books about monkeys for my year of the monkey reading challenge. I love history, I love space exploration and science fiction, and I love reading about how animals provided us with the technology we have today, because I feel it honors them after all of the cruel things that were done to them in an age before animal rights were even thought of. For all of those reasons I picked up this book and as someone who reads a lot of non fiction, I can say this book was very well written.
I found it very informative, but not at all in the dry way that most expect a book on the history of science would be. It wasn't a text book of dry facts, but the history of space exploration and the race between the US and Russia to advance their technology and blast into the future of space travel. It portrayed events from both sides of the race, which brought more of the history to life for me than a more one sided telling would have.
I would say that fans of space exploration and science fiction will love reading and learning from this book as much as lovers of history and technological development will. I could not be happier that I found this treasure hidden away in the non fiction section of my library.
I found it very informative, but not at all in the dry way that most expect a book on the history of science would be. It wasn't a text book of dry facts, but the history of space exploration and the race between the US and Russia to advance their technology and blast into the future of space travel. It portrayed events from both sides of the race, which brought more of the history to life for me than a more one sided telling would have.
I would say that fans of space exploration and science fiction will love reading and learning from this book as much as lovers of history and technological development will. I could not be happier that I found this treasure hidden away in the non fiction section of my library.
July 21, 2019
I tried shortly after this book came out and I remember it being slow; the audio copy I had was bad too, so I shelved it for a while. In brushing up on Space Race history this year I decided to give it a go again. My assessment didn't change much- it is long, dry, and detailed. Having said that it fills a niche that isn't well covered. Before I picked this book up again, I thought that most Space Race history books miss so much of the early rocket program. They usually mention Sputnik, some military failures prior to Explorer 1 being launched, Mercury books will mention Liaka and Ham, and maybe unmanned lunar missions pre-Apollo. This book covers all the details in-between and does a good job of it. It is not an easy period of history to cover in detail make entertaining. It is very informative. Although I called it dry I don't mean it as a complaint- the only real complaint I have is that characters are often introduced, with lots of background, before their purpose or role is clear. This book is not for the casual reader, but is great at filling an unfulfilled niche in rocketry history.
August 31, 2019
Enjoyable book especially as we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing/walk. The author does an excellent job keeping the story fun while providing incredible background on the drama surrounding the early years of the space program as many groups were competing for the mission(s) and funding. Did not know the details and sequence of events that took place, especially in 1957, thus the author provided an outstanding synopsis. Also informed me of who von Braun, Van Allen, and other famous individuals from this time were actually working for as the country was developing a space capability.
December 28, 2025
This book covered the years 1957 to about 1959 - beginning with the Soviet launch of Sputnik. Thus began the competition between the US and the Soviet Union to see who could get the most / biggest payload into orbit around the earth. While the US suffered through many embarrassing failures, they eventually caught up and surpassed the Soviets. The side effect of the early space program was a resurgence of money and interest in science education - leading to many of the technological advances we have today. Later, once the US had been to the moon, there never again was such interest in space and space exploration.
August 12, 2020
3.5| Library audiobooks
This is about the pre-manned flight space race. I do wish it was more extensive, and that it ended more on the threads that led us to the manned or even current defense contractors.
I learned a lot of interesting factoids and I appreciated the character vignettes, so hence the additional star.
This is about the pre-manned flight space race. I do wish it was more extensive, and that it ended more on the threads that led us to the manned or even current defense contractors.
I learned a lot of interesting factoids and I appreciated the character vignettes, so hence the additional star.
November 17, 2018
The laser-focus on a single year (even less, really) of the space race gave this book a chance to tell deeper stories about Vanguard and Explorer, as well as Sputniks 1 & 2. I know this history pretty well already, and still found lots of new anecdotes and behind-the-scenes info.
October 26, 2019
A Ball, a Dog, and a Monkey: 1957 - The Space Race Begins by Michael D'Antonio was such a fun book to read. This is a quick read. The writing style may have some challenges, but the book was still interesting and enjoyable. This is not a five star book, but it is still a book worth reading.
November 10, 2018
Interesting book, but overall underwhelming. Covers a relatively short period of time (1957-58). Good read for a space buff, but I would recommend something more comprehensive.
July 23, 2019
A good history of what is usually a pretty glossed over era in space history.
March 3, 2008
The book is an interesting look at the time, and has some great anecdotes from people who were inside the space race, but mostly is a collection of tales, rather than an overall look at the society at the time or much larger, though it touches on these things.
One of the things I'll take away is the reminder that the military was a large part of the early days of space exploration, and wanted to be the whole game. Gotta remember that the classic footage of takeoffs often includes USAF scrolling by the camera.
One of the things I'll take away is the reminder that the military was a large part of the early days of space exploration, and wanted to be the whole game. Gotta remember that the classic footage of takeoffs often includes USAF scrolling by the camera.
September 6, 2014
I listened to the audio book and enjoyed it, but I'm not sure if I would have made it all the way through if I had read it. The story was really interesting and it provides a great insight on the space race and how NASA was created. It was very detailed, so it was a bit long. Avid fans of the space industry would likely find this book fascinating.
December 13, 2015
A really good read although mostly about various minor characters in the whole saga of the early days of spaceflight. Lots of period detail. Well written.
Yet again I find that an Atlas fuel tank is as thin as a dime- but I have yet to find the actual measurement. I begin to think this is an urban myth.
Yet again I find that an Atlas fuel tank is as thin as a dime- but I have yet to find the actual measurement. I begin to think this is an urban myth.
February 23, 2016
A fascinating study of the early days of the space race, when the US and USSR began to attempt to top each other's achievements. D'Antonio brings to life many major and minor personalities, but is especially strong in finding and painting portraits of those involved in the intermediate or lower levels of the US programs.
January 10, 2017
I actually really enjoyed this book. Even though there were hostilities during the time period, I didn't feel like D'Antonio emphasized this aspect of history - something I'm actually grateful full. The anecdotes are written well so it doesn't reflect unnecessary bias. And for the most part the "plot" moves along at a steady pace - there were very few slow points in the whole book.
June 20, 2010
A very interesting and well written snap-shot of space race.
maybe-read-sometime
May 25, 2011Seems to deal mostly with the bureaucratic wrestling over the early space program. I only read/skimmed the first couple dozen pages, though, so I may be wrong.
October 11, 2011
An excellently written book about the first days of the apace race in the 1950's.
August 14, 2012
Interesting topic, well written book, well read audio book.
April 24, 2013
Very interesting to hear the story of how the space race got started.
September 6, 2014
Very well researched. A little dry at times perhaps, but still quite interesting.
February 11, 2017
I really enjoyed this. Well written, which focusses on a few a key well known and also lesser known characters from the beginning of the Space Race.
October 17, 2010
Polished chrome. A hell of a good read.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews