"This is a book about rocket science: what it is and what it does. From the earliest fireworks to nuclear-powered spacecraft, all you would ever want or need to know about the subject is here, along with a straightforward explanation of how, why and when things work--or sometimes don't. We begin with the history and workings of early terrestrial rocketry before moving onto the main subject of the book: how we get things into space and, on occasion,...